


The Package

by BibliophileLove



Category: Invader Zim
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-21
Updated: 2014-07-12
Packaged: 2018-01-26 01:02:06
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 18
Words: 42,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1668953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BibliophileLove/pseuds/BibliophileLove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After years of being on Earth, Zim finally succeeds in his mission. Now he takes Dib captive, bringing him with him to Irk.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a few years ago and it is complete. I'll update regularly, if enough people like it enough to read it. Please review. <3 
> 
> I apologize for any and all mistakes, I don't have a beta.

Chapter One

 

I stood on a platform, hovering hundreds of yards from the ground, watching the world burn.

 

I could see for miles, buildings going up in smoke and flames, people screaming and running in every direction like mad things. Police helicopters were everywhere and sirens would start up every few seconds, only to cut off again. There just weren’t enough fire trucks to cover _everything_ , because _everything_ was burning. The smoke from the fires was so thick I was almost choking on it. I might as well have been choking, I couldn’t breathe anyway.

   

The platform that I stood on was Irken technology, the finest. He had wanted me to see it, he said. And I was seeing it. Oh God, I was seeing it.

   

My hands were bound in some kind of handcuffs; I hadn’t tried to get them off. Even if I did, what then? There was nothing I could do now. The damage was done. He had won. On May twenty third, at five forty seven pm, he had destroyed the world. And I hadn’t been able to stop him.

   

It had happened so fast, this morning I woke up, got dressed for school and left the house, I even met him at the corner like we have done for years. He didn’t act any different than he usually does. We went to school, sat through the same boring classes, ate lunch at the same table, just the two of us because we were each others only friend. Or so I thought. We sat through the rest of our classes, walked home together, and split at the corner. He even asked if I was coming over to his house later. ‘Of course,’ I said, ‘like always.’.

   

I fell to my knees, my eyes staring blindly, not really seeing. I thought he had changed. He didn’t act like he used too, when we were children. I thought the games that we used to play were over. I thought he had given up on destroying my world. We had become so close… I thought that maybe I had changed him. Boy, guess I was wrong.

  

“Well Dib-human? What do you think?” His voice came from behind me. It had grown deeper as we had gotten older. Not suddenly, like a human going through puberty, like mine, but gradually. Slowly. Of course, it still had that metallic undertone, an imprint of what he really was. I turned my head slowly. He wasn’t looking at me. He was staring out at the consequences of his actions. This was his moment. The one he had been waiting for for years. I looked at him then, really looked at him. I don’t know why, it wasn’t like I didn’t already have every detail of his psychical appearance memorized. You can thank years of unhealthy obsession for that.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_I was sitting in my room at my desk, with my chin resting in my hand, doing some pointless homework that was assigned to me in science class. School had only started back up again two days ago, and the teachers were already giving homework, sixth grade sucked. My phone rang, demanding my attention. I frowned. No one ever called me except Gaz, and she was downstairs. I looked at my caller ID and saw a number that I didn’t recognize. Insanely curious, I answered._

_“DIB-HUMAN! I need you to come to my house. Now.” His voice was more familiar to me that even my own. I smiled to myself, leaning back in my computer chair as I dropped my pencil on my desk._

_“Why? You always yell at me whenever I come over, even when I’m NOT trying to plant cameras that we both know will never successfully record any footage that I can actually use. And how did you get my number anyway?” I asked, an afterthought._

_“Such information is classified. And I don’t CARE about the cameras. You must come over. Gir needs attention and I am too BUSY WITH STUFF to be bothered with him.” He screeched into the phone. I didn’t even know he had a phone._

_“You know, Gir is your stupid robot. Not mine. He’s your responsibility; you should have to put up with him.” I said, thoroughly enjoying the conversation in general._

_“I CAN’T right now. I am expecting a call from the Tallest, I must speak to them with no INTERRUPTIONS.” He growled. I sighed, very over exaggeratedly._

_“Alright Zim, I guess I can come babysit your retarded robot.” I said, smiling again. I could hear Gir in the background screaming hysterically._

_“NOW.” He said again, before the line went dead. I began scrambling around my room, throwing things haphazardly into my bag  before I bolted out the door._

 

* * *

 

  
  


He was tall. Much taller than any of the others of his race, which for him was an amazing and empowering thing. We were exactly the same height, about six foot, two inches. We stood exactly eye to eye. I suddenly couldn’t remember what he had said. As though he sensed it, as though he just knew, he spoke again.

“Answer me, Dib.” He looked at me then. He wore no human disguise. No need to anymore, I guess. Or maybe he just wanted to remind me of what he really was. My eyes stung. I couldn’t tell if it was the smoke or the tears threatening to spill at any second. As I looked into his red, red eyes, his face wore that superior ‘I am Irken, and you are nothing but a pitiful and inferior human’ expression that I had seen so many times. My eyes burned more.

 

“How… Why? I thought… I thought…” I couldn’t finish. I looked away from him. I couldn’t look at his face anymore. I looked out again, at the cities burning. At my home burning. At my planet, burning. We had been together so long now… we were seniors, about to graduate. Life wasn’t perfect… but I thought we were happy. I thought we were okay. I really thought that he had given up on his mission.

 

“Why am I still alive?” I managed to choke out. I looked back at him, I was suddenly looking up at him, I didn’t remember falling to my knees.

“I will keep you as my zakri. My… what is the human word? My pet? My slave? It is common for Invaders to pick one of the creatures from the planet that they conquer as their zakri. It is a way to show one's prowess, ones accomplishment. They are popular, back at Irk. You are tall, so you are a wonderful catch. No Irken is as tall as you or I, not even the Tallest.” He said this last bit quietly, almost as if he was talking to himself. It was the best compliment that I had ever gotten from him. He would probably never say it again. He had looked away from me, and out at the world. He was staring so intensely that I could see the flames reflected in his large eyes. Almost as if he wanted to burn this image into his mind forever.

  

“Take a good look, Dib-thing, for this is the last time you will ever see your earth.” He said, in an almost bored tone. He turned and walked away from me, walking toward the Irkens soldiers with their weird Irken computers, waiting for his report. I looked back at the place that was my home. I could see my house in the distance, or what was left of it. I thought of Gaz, of my dad, dead. I couldn’t see Zim’s house. I couldn’t even manage to be angry. I just didn’t have the energy in me to be angry.

   

I thought of all the times that we spent together, sitting in the cafeteria, going to the movies, sitting at his house watching TV, walking Gir. He had told me of Irk and how he missed it. I had told him of my dad and how he was never home. We had become close. I trusted him. How could he do this?

   

“Time to go Dib. Get up.” His thin green fingers wrapped around my upper arm, pulling me to my feet. I was numb, I went willingly, there was no point in struggling now. One of his soldiers walked up to us, reaching out towards me. Suddenly, Zim reached out and shoved him back violently. He hissed words in Irken at the soldier. Words that I could understand because I had taught myself his language so that I could speak to him in his native tongue. So that he wouldn’t be so homesick.

 

“No! He will ride in my ship with me. He does not leave my sight. Do not touch him.” He said, his eyes narrowing angrily. The soldier backed up, his eyes wide. He said nothing. Zim gripped my arm with his sharp fingers and pulled me to a smaller platform, I stumbled up onto it. We rose up, into his ship. I guess it was his ship. I had never seen it before. He pushed me into a seat next to his before he sat down. He took the controls and I felt the ship vibrate and come alive with movement.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_“Hey Zim, teach me your language.” I said from his couch where I sat watching TV with Gir. Zim was sitting at his kitchen table, tinkering with some Irken device._

_“Why would I want to spill Irken secrets with a filthy stink beast such as yourself?” He said, his voice monotone while he concentrated. The insults didn’t bother me like they used too, after all, we were in ninth grade now, we were friends. We had outgrown that kind of stuff._

_“That way I can talk to you in Irken. I know you miss it.” I said, looking over at him. He grunted and mumbled something about my being “unworthy of his great and superior Irken tongue”. I sighed and dropped the subject. A few days later I came over to his house and saw that there was a bookshelf in his living room that had never been there before. I dropped my bag and walked over to it as Zim walked into the room carrying an empty plate. He ignored me as I looked through the books, all in Irken. I grabbed one and opened it, the pages were made of some weird flimsy material that wasn’t paper._

_“You know, I can decipher these and learn on my own. I don’t need your help.” I said, glancing at him. He grunted and waved his hand and me, as though trying to get me to shut up. I turned back to the bookcase and smiled to myself, grabbing a few more books off of the shelf._

 

 

* * *

 

 

I stared blankly through the thick clear alien substance that made up his front window. The ship was rising rapidly, the beautiful blue sky that I loved was only visible for a few more minutes before it gave way to the inky blackness of space. I had always loved being in space, but it held no interest for me now. I could feel him glancing over at me, but I continued to stare out of the window. I felt numb, emotionally dead. I guess I couldn’t really complain. Numb is better than the pain.

“Dib-beast, look at me.” He ordered. I looked at him. Why resist? He looked into my eyes for a moment before his expression became irritated. It amazed me sometimes how similar his expressions were to that of a human.

“You are going into shock, stupid weak human. Hold still.” His pack opened up and one of his mechanical legs reached behind him and picked up a aluminum case, placing it into his lap. He opened the case and pulled out a syringe and glass bottle, full of some clear liquid. He stuck the needle into it and drew out a fair amount before closing the case. He held his hand out for me. I didn’t even think. I gave him my arm. I doubted he would go through the trouble of keeping me alive only to kill me now.

 

The needle didn’t hurt, and I was relieved when I felt the first strings of unconscious pulling at my mind. I looked at him, and even though he had just destroyed my home, my family, and my whole way of life out of an act of selfishness and greed, I think I loved him then. He was taking away my pain, putting me out of my misery. I knew it wasn’t death that he was giving me, I wasn’t that lucky, but a time of unconscious, where I didn’t have to think or see my sisters face in my head. He was giving me an escape from my grief. And I loved him for that.

 

I know I should have hated him. I should have raged, and screamed, and hit him. He had just ruined my life. He had betrayed me, and killed my family, demolished my home. My planet. The screams and sounds of fire devouring the earth were still ringing in my ears, and I know that it should have broken me. Was I broken? I wasn’t sure. I was just numb.

 

I stared at him as he pulled the needle out slowly, and placed it back in the case. My vision was narrowing, but I saw his mechanical leg come into view and pick the case back up, getting it out of his way. He turned back to the controls and started punching buttons and pulling random knobs and levers. My eyelids were so heavy, and I knew it would feel so good to go to sleep right then, but I stared at him for as long as I could, with his smooth green skin and narrow red eyes. He always narrowed his eyes when he was bothered by something. I blinked a few times, slowly, and suddenly he was blurry and I couldn’t see him. The fact that I couldn’t see him anymore was tragic to me, so tragic that I wanted to cry. And then everything was black, and I couldn’t feel anything.

  
  
  
  



	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

 

 

* * *

 

 

_I stood in the lunchline, frowning. I was seriously doubting that what the cafeteria was trying to serve us qualified as ‘food’, but what the heck? I picked up some… noodly… stuff, and made my way to our regular table. He was already there of course, with his usual tray full of food that he never touched. He had his elbow on the table and was resting his chin in his thin green hand, staring out at the other kids menacingly. He did his typical ‘one eye wide and the other squinty’ look when I sat down. He opened his mouth in a sudden silent scream, his weird tongue going all kinds of crazy. No one else noticed his tongue, just like no one else noticed his green skin and lack of anything remotely like ears, but I did. When his fit was over, he settled back down calmly like nothing had happened and asked;_

_“Why do you EAT that Dib-thing? It’s so DISGUSTING.” He said, waving one hand around in the air. The noise around us made us both have to raise our voices in order for us to hear each other. Middle school cafeterias were always raucous._

_“Because I have to eat something. I can’t just go hungry, and this is all I have to eat.” I said, grumpily digging through the mush with my spork._

_“Why do you not bring food from home?” His tone changed for a moment, almost as though he was genuinely curious._

_“Because dad only leaves Gaz and I so much money, we have to use it for breakfast and dinner. We don’t have enough for lunch too. Plus, it’s not so bad once you get used to it.” I said, trying to be convincing. He seemed satisfied because he stopped questioning me at that point. We sat throughout the rest of lunch in silence, and finished our day as we normally did._

_The next day, I sat through the same lunch line and got the same slop to eat and then went and sat at the same table. Though this time when I sat down, there was something different. A brown paper bag sat on the table next to Zim. It was slightly smushed, and stained near the bottom. I raised my eyebrow at it in curiosity as I sat down, silently questioning. He glanced at it and sighed, a greatly over exaggerated sigh._

_“Gir made this STUPID sandwich for my lunch today. I don’t know WHY, he knows that I DESPISE human food. You should eat it so that I do not have to.” He said, not looking at me but staring at his own fingers as though they were very interesting. I sat for a moment, too stunned to speak, trying to think of the right thing to say without setting him off. I finally decided on silent gratitude. I smiled and nodded, grabbing the bag. The sandwich had mayonnaise on it. I hate mayonnaise. But I ate it anyway._

 

 

* * *

 

 

I knew he must not have given me too much of whatever sedative that he had used, because I woke up periodically throughout our trip. I have no idea how long we were flying, you don’t feel time pass when you’re sleeping. Every time I woke up I glanced over at him, he was always doing the same thing, looking straight ahead, not moving. Completely silent. I wasn’t ready to talk to him just yet, so I went back to sleep. I wasn’t really fully awake anyway and I knew I would need to have my wits about me when we finally spoke.

   

The last time I woke up, I was moving, rocking back and forth. I was being carried, I opened my eyes groggily to see him above me. I have no idea how he could carry me, I outweighed him by quite a bit, even though we were the same height. I was thin, but I was muscled. He was just thin. I was only half awake as he carried me through hallways, bringing me to some unknown destination. I didn’t stay awake long enough to find out.

   

When I finally woke up for good, I was lying in a bed in a dark room, with an IV hooked into my arm. There was an Irken monitor next to the bed that I was lying on, beeping slowly but continuously. I looked around, trying to push the sleep from my mind. I could hear a faint humming noise coming from somewhere nearby. There were no lights in the room, but when I turned my head I could see that there was a slightly opened door to my right with light sneaking through. I could see someone moving in the room, through the door. As my mind cleared, I realized that the humming noise was Zim, speaking fluidly in Irken.  He was speaking to the screen mounted on the wall, and I could make out the Tallest on the screen, listening to him silently with narrowed eyes. He was walking back and forth, pacing as he spoke. His voice was low, but I could make out a few words, such as “living arrangements”, “orders”, and “compromise”. His language was always kind of hard to translate into English.

 

I tried to sit up, but the monitor beeped loudly, betraying my movement to Zim. He spoke one quick sentence in Irken, then the screen went black, cutting out all of the light. I stopped moving and listened. I didn’t hear him come into the room, but when he turned on a lamp near the door, I quickly shielded my eyes from the unwelcome brightness. I felt the bed dip at the edge near my feet when he sat down. I squinted up at him. He stared at my face, his expression serious. When I said nothing, he spoke.

  

“You refused to wake Dib-human, I was forced to resort to other alternatives.” He said, his eyes flickering to the IV and the monitor before coming back to rest on my face. I stared at him, and felt… empty. Almost as if I was missing something. As if I was forgetting something. That bothered me a bit.

“Do you feel unwell?” He asked, his eyes still boring into mine. I checked over myself mentally, trying to figure out what was wrong. I couldn’t find anything but there was still that nagging feeling in the back of my head. I shook my head, and spoke, my voice cracking as though I hadn’t used it in days.

“I feel alright.” And then it hit me. Zim had destroyed my home, my family, my life. That pain came to me suddenly, and my chest ached, a dull pounding ache. I gasped, trying to breathe. My mind must have tried to block it, to block the memory so that this would not have happened. I tried to push it back down, to not think of it as the monitor beeped faster and faster. Zim stood quickly and reach for his aluminum case on the floor, pulling out his sedatives again. He filled the needle as fast as he could while I gasped for air, seeing the fires and hearing the screams. I barely felt when the needle went into my arm. But I felt the calm come over me again. And I was grateful. It was easier then, to push those memories away.

   

“You will be okay Dib. You’ll see. We will be moving soon, we will be moving to Conventia, where the tallest live. We are going to live in their estate with them, as their counsel. We will be the first counsel the tallest have had in over three hundred years.” He said, I wasn’t sure if he was trying to distract himself or me.

“We must talk Dib, we must speak of what will come. But not now, now you have to sleep, I must have my Zakri in good condition when we go, I do not want others to think you are unworthy. They must see you at your best. So sleep Dib-human. I will wake you when its time.” He said, putting his case back on the floor. He stood up again, walking back across the room. He looked back at me, just before he turned off the lamp, cutting off my vision. I waited a few seconds then heard nothing.  I felt heavy and warm, I knew it was the drugs. But I felt at peace, so I wasn’t complaining. All those dark thoughts, those bad things were gone for now. So I was okay. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. The monitor had slowed back down and was normal again. I began to feel the sleep come over me, but before I drifted out of consciousness, I heard it. The soft sound of music, familiar music. Something from home. A song that I used to listen too at night, when I had trouble sleeping. I felt the first tear slide down my face as I listened. But I was too tired to cry. Just before I slipped away completely, I heard his voice whisper, as though I was already dreaming.

“It will be okay Dib, you will see. Nothing will hurt us now.”


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I know my update is two day late, and I sincerely apologize. They will continue Friday as scheduled. I'll post two chapters today, to make up for it. I realize these chapters are very short, but I wrote this story like three years ago so it's not up to my more recent standards. Sorry about that. 
> 
> And I would like to thank my lonely reviewer! It was the email notification on my phone this morning that pushed me into updating, so this one is for you.

Chapter 3

 

I woke up with one thought running through my mind: “GOTTA PEE”.

 

So I sat up, slowly, groaning when that stupid monitor went off. I looked behind me and around the bed, the thing must have had power cord somewhere. I felt that painful tug at my arm and remembered the IV, and yanked it out. The monitor shut up then. Alright, one problem down.

 

I swung my legs off the side of the bed and onto the floor. I ached all over, I had no idea how long I had been sleeping. I felt that familiar ‘I’m forgetting something feeling’, but this time I wisely ignored it. Zim was nowhere to be seen, which was comforting and annoying all at the same time. I had to pee dammit, and I didn’t know my way around this place. I tried to stand, but my legs shook too bad, so I sat back down, running my fingers through my hair, frustrated. I must have been out longer than I thought. I was not letting him drug me again.

   

I heard someone gasp and looked up quickly. It was brighter this time, so I could see the green face clearly. He was short, much shorter than me and he stood in the doorway staring at me. I stared back and after a few moments I got aggravated and said;

“Hey, I need to go to the bathroom, like NOW. Where the hell is it? And where is Zim?” I asked, annoyed. The little green dude, seeming to realize that he had been staring, straightened up and began speaking in Irken.

 

 _“Lord Zim said that you must stay in this room until he returns.”_  I was about to respond hotly when the bastard himself appeared in the doorway behind the soldier.

 _“That is all, you are dismissed.”_ He said, his narrowed eyes following the small man all the way out of the door and into the next room where I couldn’t see him. When he looked back at me, his eyes ran over my whole body, inspecting.

   

“Do you feel well Dib-beast?” He asked, almost cautiously.

“I would feel fine if I were allowed to go take a PISS.” I said angrily. He looked at me suspiciously for a moment before nodding and walking over to me, grabbing me by the arm and lifting me up effortlessly. I began to argue but my legs threatened to buckle and it was all I could do not to fall. He led me to the side of the room where he let me lean against the wall before he took one of his thin fingers and ran it along an Irken symbol that had been etched into it. The symbol glowed and the wall opened suddenly, presenting a green urinal. Then he stood there, watching me, waiting. I stared at him dully, and waited for him to turn around. He seemed clueless, and continued staring at me. I sighed.

   

“Zim, you have to turn around. I can’t piss with you watching.” I said, monotone. He freaked, one red eye going wide and the other narrowing to a slit. He pointed at me wildly, screaming;

“You just want me to turn around so that you can… do… something!!!” I was a little surprised, he hadn’t made an accusation like that in a while. I felt the ghost of a smile tug at my mouth, but my irritation and extreme need to empty my bladder won in the end.

“Zim. I have to pee. Either you turn around, and let me go in peace, or I will pee on your face next time you go to sleep. Seriously. Turn around.” I growled. He looked for a moment like he might argue, but he just eyed me suspiciously before turning around like I asked. I shook my head and unzipped my pants, FINALLY letting it out. I must have peed for at least sixty seconds straight. When I finally zipped my pants back up, he spoke over his bony shoulder.

  

“Are you done yet stink beast? We have things of a VERY important nature to attend to.” He said, tapping his black boot on the weird Irken floor. I wobbled back over to the bed and sat down before I spoke.

“What do you mean things of an important nature?  I don’t want to do anything Zim. And why the hell did that soldier call you “Lord Zim”? What are you, God or something?” I asked, with my head in my hands. I felt tired still, but there was no fucking way I was going back to sleep.

  

“We must get ready for the move. We will be at the Tallest’s estate in a few day’s time.” He said, looking around the room. I watched him stand there, his antennae twitching as they always did when he was agitated. He had avoided my question, but I didn’t really care.

“I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying here. You go. I don’t care.” I said, laying back down on the bed. He nearly jumped out of his skin, he moved so fast. Suddenly his face was inches above mine, looking down at me in anger.

“I did not go through the trouble of saving your life for you to act like a petulant little smeet!” He screeched in my face. I was about to yell something back before I realized what he had said.

“What do you mean, save my life? You didn’t save my life Zim. You fucking destroyed it!” I screamed at him. I leaned up on my elbows as I felt the rant building up in my throat. “You should have left me there to die, that would have been the kinder thing to do, rather that drag me off to this rock to be miserable! I fucking hate you for this! You ruined EVERYTHING! What was so horrible about the life that we had that you had to go and fuck it up?!? Well?!?! What was so fucking wrong with it?!?! Was it that bad, living there with me?!?! Were you that miserable, amongst us humans?!?! Well guess what Zim, mission accomplished! Earth is gone, along with any kindness I had left in me for YOU!” I screamed in his face. When I was done, I was heaving, breathing hard like I had just run a marathon. He had backed up a few inches, but he was still hovering over me, looking down at me with surprise on his face. I was so angry, more angry with him than I had ever been in my life. I didn’t regret anything that I had said, because it was all true. He blinked a few times, before standing and turning away from me. His stood straight and still and rigid. He was silent for a few minutes before he spoke.

   

“It doesn’t matter if you are angry with me Dib-worm. You will still come with me to Conventia, you are still my slave. Nothing but death will change that.” He said evilly.

“Well maybe I would rather die.” I spat, sitting up and staring at the back of his stupid green alien head. He turned around again, and screamed in my face.

“YOU WILL NOT DIE! I will not let you. I have risked too much!” He said, cutting off abruptly and turned around facing away from me again. “I must go meet with the Tallest. You will stay here. I will be back for you later.” He said stiffly. He walked quickly out the door and slammed it shut behind him with a click. I knew he had locked me in, that was just like him. I screamed in frustration before slamming my fist into the mattress.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_“Hey Zim!” I yelled as I walked into the front door of his house. The TV was on and Gir was laying upside down on the couch, with his head hanging off upside down, staring at the screen. There was a melting chocolate ice cream cone sitting on the couch beside him, and there was chocolate ice cream foaming out of his mouth. I shook my head at him and walked passed, into the kitchen and into the elevator that I had forced him to build. I was too freaking tall to cram into that stupid trash can anymore. I was taller than most seventeen year olds that I knew, Zim and I both. The elevator brought me down to his lab, where he was sitting at his computer typing like a madman._

_“Hey, I was calling you. Didn’t you hear?” I asked, glancing up at his screen. It was all in Irken, but after I had learned his language the writing hadn’t been that difficult to memorize. He was trying to figure out if it was living on Earth that had caused him to grow to be so tall. He had become obsessed with his height lately._

_“Don’t ignore me,” I said, poking him in his bony shoulder. He suddenly turned to me, his face was very close to mine. I could feel his breathe on my skin as he spoke excitedly._

_“Dib- thing! I think I am close!” He squealed, his fingers never stopping. The clicking of the keys was distracting. “I believe our relationship is the main cause for my height mutation, for I have always been the same height as you!” He said excitedly, his face getting even closer. I began to get nervous and stuttered a bit when I spoke._

_“Uh Zim, I doubt that.” I said, laughing a little. He shook his head and moved even closer, rubbing his cheek against mine. I jumped and stood up quickly. He looked up at me confused and hurt, before he hid it and narrowed his eyes._

_“Why do you run from Zim?” He asked. His fingers stopped clicking._

_“I’m not running from you. It’s just… it means something when you rub your face against mine like that Zim.” I said, nervous. His head turned to the side, curious._

_“What does it mean?”_

_“Well… it’s sort of… a sign of affection… for humans.” I said, my face heating up. He stared at me blankly for a moment, and I had no idea what he was thinking. Finally, he spoke._

_“I must research this “human affection”. I must know more.” He said simply. He turned back to his keyboard and continued typing._

* * *

 

  
  
  



	4. Chapter Four

Chapter 4

 

I had a long time to myself to think. I’m not sure exactly how long he was gone, I just know that I must have been locked in that room alone for at least four or five hours. It was empty for the most part, the color scheme of the room was strange, but it was similar to Zim’s house on Earth, so it was oddly comforting. The only things that were in there were the bed, the stupid monitor and a small table with the lamp near the door. It was just… empty. Barren.

          

There were Irken symbols etched into the walls in odd places, like the one over the spot where the urinal was. I tried touching a few, like Zim did, to see if anything popped out of the walls or, in some cases , the floor or ceiling. But they didn’t react to me. Guess my human skin just wasn’t as good as his Irken skin. Any more of this crap and I might develop some stupid insecurity complex.

          

Every now and then I would hear something from outside the door, but the noises would eventually go away and I would be stuck in silence again. After a few hours I became so bored that I considered just going back to sleep, but I thought better of it. I wanted to be awake when he came back. So instead of pacing, I laid down on the bed and stared at the Irken symbols scattered across the room, resigned to wait.

 

 

* * *

 

 

_“Hey Zim, I can’t figure this one out. It’s driving me nuts.” I groaned, aggravated. I was sitting at his kitchen table studying Irken symbols, occasionally dodging waffles as Gir hummed them at my head. Zim was pacing the room ranting about some new Irken law that had passed back at his home planet, but half of his tirade was in Irken, so I could only catch every other word or so. After I spoke, he paused in mid-sentence and walked over to me, his antennae twitching in annoyance. He didn’t wear his human disguise that much anymore when it was just me and him. He looked down and the page and at the symbol I was pointing to._

_“It means Kaezix, or mate in your language. Now don’t interrupt me DIB.” He said, eyeing me from two inches away. Before I could respond, he turned around and continued ranting, picking up right where he left off. Suddenly interested, I stared at the work again. The paragraph I was trying to translate was something like;_

_‘Due to recent drops in Irks numbers of mated pairs, we have started producing smeets using a bio chamber similar to that of an Irkens reproduction sack. But we have also discovered that these smeets that we have cloned, have an even greater absence of affections for others. Therefore, if we continue to produce them, our kind will eventually not psychically reproduce at all, and we will come to be a race of cloned Irkens.’_

_Amazed, I looked at Zim as he walked around me for the sixth hundredth time, and asked;_

_“Zim, how were you born?” He stopped in mid-sentence again and looked at me with wide eyes, cocking his head to one side._

_“Why do you ask this Zim this question?” He asked quietly. I pointed to the page that I had been reading, and he narrowed his eyes. He knew what I had been reading. He must have read it before he told me what the symbol meant._

_“I was born like every other member of my race. In an artificial reproduction sack. Then I was given my own pack and taught what it is to be an Irken Invader.” He finished, puffing out his chest proudly. I stared at him, and wondered for the first time, what his life had really been like. What he had been through and what kinds of things he had seen. He stared back for a few moments, before turning around and going into the elevator without a word._

 

* * *

 

 

I must have fallen asleep again at some point, because I woke up with Zim hovering over me, poking me in the face with his long, skinny, green finger. I opened my eyes and looked up at him, but didn’t move. Just stared at him as he continued to poke me. When he finally stopped, I began to sit up and he moved back to give me room. I was sure my cheek was red from where he had poked me for thirty freakin minutes.

“Dib must wash and change his clothes. You smell like human FILTH.” He said. He held out a towel and a pair of my pants and one of my favorite shirts. I stared at the clothes, speechless.

“Zim… where did you get these?” I asked, holding up the clothes.

“NO QUESTIONS!” He screeched, “OBEY ZIM!” He walked past me to one of the Irken symbols that were carved into the floor and traced it with his finger. A trap door opened up, I could see stairs leading down into darkness.

          

“There is a bath and soap stuff waiting for you. Go clean the stink off of you and meet me back here.” He ordered. I stared at him for a moment more before walking over to the trap door and descending into the darkness. I began reaching out with my fingers and found that the stairs were next to a wall and after walking down a few feet, I fumbled over a switch. I flipped it and squinted when the light caught me off guard. I was in a small room that could only be described as an Irken version of a bathroom. There was a huge tub against one wall filled with water, when I dipped my finger in it was warm. Sighing, I took off the clothes that I was wearing and sunk into the water. He had placed a bar of soap on the side of the tub so I washed myself thoroughly, not knowing when he would give me another chance to bathe.

          

When I finished, I stepped out and dried off with the towel and dressed. I picked up the dirty clothes off of the floor and carried them up the stairs with me. I wasn’t about to leave anything from home anywhere where I could lose it. When I reached the top of the steps and walked back into the room, Zim wasn’t there but he had left the door open and I could hear him in the other room talking to someone on the screen he had mounted on his wall. It wasn’t the tallest this time, I wasn’t sure who this Irken was, but he was talking and Zim was listening intently.

 _“We are ready for your arrival now, Lord Zim. We have arranged your living quarters just as you requested and we have brought all of the cargo from your personal storage and set it up in the spare room just as you asked.”_ He said. I listened to Zim’s response.

 _“Good. We will leave here shortly then. No reason to wait if everything is in order. You are dismissed. Please give the Tallest my thanks.”_  He said, I could tell from his voice that he was smiling. The screen blacked out and I chose that moment to walk through the door and into the next room. This room was more cluttered than the last. Some of Zim’s equipment had been set up here, it looked like he had been working.

          

“Dib-thing. Now that you are ready we can go.” He said, looking at me. He continued to stare at me for a moment, as though expecting another argument. I thought about it, but it felt like all the anger had been drained out of me. Now I was just ready to get this over with. I was tired of staying cooped up in that little empty room with nothing but my own thoughts. When I didn’t respond, he said;

“Good, my ship is waiting, I will have the rest of my things brought separately. Follow me.” He waved his bony hand at me before picking up a small Irken device off of a table and opening a door that led out of the room. He held it open while I walked through and then shut it behind us. I held my dirty clothes tightly to me as I followed him down a hallway. Every now and then we would pass an Irken soldier on guard and he or she would bow to him. Frowning, I asked;

“Why the hell are they bowing to you?” I whispered. For some reason I felt as though I shouldn’t be talking. As if to confirm my suspicions, he glanced at me gave me a look that clearly said ‘no talking’, so I sighed and followed him in silent aggravation. We walked through the doors that led into his ship and I sat down in my usual seat, while he sat in his seat and started messing with buttons. I felt the ship vibrate to life once again and stared out of the window.

 

“Why are we going to live with the Tallest?” I asked dully, not really expecting him to answer.

“Because I am going to be their advisor. It is either that or become Tallest myself.” He said. That caught my attention.

“What do you mean, become tallest yourself?” I asked, looking at him.

“Since Zim has grown to be taller than the Tallest, then I am supposed to take their place and become the NEW Tallest. It is our law. But Zim does not want to be Tallest. So Zim made a deal with the Tallest. I will leave them their position, if they give me position as their advisor, and a room in their house. This leaves me with power, but not responsibility.” He said seriously. I stared at him, stunned. I couldn’t remember him ever being that honest with me before. And when did he get so… cunning? How long had he been planning this and hiding it from me?

          

“Are you… well Dib-stink?” He asked, “Are you better than before?” He looked at me, seriously, and I knew he expected a serious answer.

“I am better than before. But no, I am not well.” I said, looking away from him. “It will never be like it was before Zim. You ruined that.” I whispered, staring out the window again.

“You are right Dib-beast. It will not be like it was before. It will be better.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

_I woke up suddenly, as though an alarm clock had gone off in my head. Today was my sixteenth birthday. Funny how I didn’t feel any different at all. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and tried to rub the sleep out of my eyes. I felt blindly on my bedside table for my glasses, finally finding them and shoving them up my nose. I walked out of my bedroom and down the hall to my bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind me. I went pee before glancing in the mirror, my hair was sticking up in all directions. I didn’t care. I brushed my teeth and left the bathroom, walking back into my bedroom and began to get dressed. It was as I was pulling my pants on that I noticed a small papered box on my desk. It had Zim’s name in Irken written on it. It was one symbol, I had seen it many times, branded onto his things. I smiled._

_I picked up the box and unwrapped it, inside was a remote control, it was shaped about the same as a regular remote controller, but I could tell that Zim had made it. It had small Irken symbols on the buttons, ones that read “power”, “play”, “pause”, “next”, “skip”, stuff like that. Like for a stereo or something. I pressed the “power” button, but nothing happened. Frowning, I pocketed the controller and finished getting dressed before heading out the door and to Zim’s house._

 

 

* * *

 


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Again, I know it's not Friday. I am so sorry. I'm having trouble setting up the hotspot from my phone at home, so I'm currently sitting at Barnes and Noble on my iPad in order to upload chapters. I'm not sure if I'll be able to upload every Monday and Friday as I had originally planned, but I WILL upload at least once a week, even if I have to drag my giant iMac out of the house to do it. 
> 
> It's proving to be very difficult for me to do this from the iPad, my line breaks and italics aren't copying so I'm having to reinsert them manually, which is tedious. So I'll only be uploading one chapter instead of two.
> 
> I apologize again for the delay. Hope to see you soon. Enjoy!

Chapter 5

 

We didn’t speak much for the rest of the trip. I was trying not to think of what he had done to my home, and I was actually doing a good job at avoiding it. I was able to keep my depression under control. It didn’t take us that long to reach Conventia, a few hours maybe. We passed other Irken ships along the way. I had to admit, even through the sulking, I was interested in everything I was seeing. His technology had always fascinated me.

 

Along the way, the silence seemed to bother Zim, and he reached up and hit some button on his consul. Music started playing, music from home. Music that I loved. I looked over at him and was about to say something mean, something out of anger. But when I looked at him, I saw that he was mouthing the words to the song. All the anger left me in a rush as I stared at him. He didn’t look at me, just continued mouthing the words to the songs as we moved through space.

 

We when finally pulled into the dock at Conventia, he shut off his ships engines and the music stopped. He looked at me then, and spoke menacingly.

“Now Dib, we will be walking from here to my rooms, they are not far, but we are sure to meet other Irken members of the Tallests household along the way. DO NOT SPEAK to them. Do you understand me Dib-worm? You must not say ANYTHING in front of them. Do not even acknowledge them, you are to look at the floor, or at me. Do you understand?” He said, looking at me seriously. I scowled at him as I responded.

“Yes Lord Zim.” I said, my voice was dripping with sarcasm.

“Good. You always did learn quickly for an earth creature.” He said, not affected by my cynicism at all. The jerk.

 

We left the ship and walked down the loading dock and into a huge room where we were met by three Irken soldiers. I watched them bow before I remembered that I wasn’t supposed to be watching anyone or anything but Zim. I looked down at the floor but couldn’t help but glance at them out of the corner of my eye as they spoke.

 _“Lord Zim, welcome back. Your rooms are ready and waiting, they are on the top floor on the other side of the estate. Would you like us to escort you?”_ One asked respectfully.

 _“No. I can find my way myself. You can retrieve the rest of my cargo and have it brought to my room. What time does my party start?_ ” He asked.

 _“In a few hours, my Lord. Shall we come and warn you before it starts?_ ”

 _“Yes that is acceptable. Thank you.”_ He said, before walking passed them. I followed him, walking behind him so that I could look around without him freaking out on me. The place was huge, like earths version of a mansion. It seemed like we walked forever. When we came into one room, Zim stopped short, going rigid. Confused, I stopped behind him, looking around just before I heard it.

 

 _“Zim! How are you? It’s been such a long time…”_ She was tall for an Irken, probably about five foot eight, and wore the Irken Invader uniform that I had come to know so well. She walked fluidly over to Zim and stepped close to him, rubbing her cheek along his. I felt the beginning of white hot anger churn in my stomach. I balled up my fists and tried to keep my eyes on him, but I couldn’t see his expression from behind him. The female Invader ignored me and continued.

 _“How have you been? I’m so glad you finally conquered that pathetic rock. I always knew you would.”_ She said sweetly in her metallic Irken voice. I wanted to punch her. Zim moved a step back, towards me, and politely pushed the girls hands away from him, speaking stiffly.

 

 _“Zeema. What a pleasant surprise. I would love to stay and chat but I have to get to my new rooms, I have urgent THINGS to attend to.”_ He said, pulling away from her.

 _“Oh alright, but we must catch up later at your party. I have missed you.”_ She said in that sickeningly sweet voice that I was already starting to hate. I took a deep breath and stared hard at Zim. I was surprised that I wasn’t burning a hole in the back of his head. Zim nodded, but didn’t speak as he walked away from her. She just smiled and watched him leave. She didn’t look at me. Not once.

 

I was fuming as we continued to walk. Zim’s pace had increased, as though he was in a hurry. I was glad, I wanted to get to his room so that I could choke the life from him. I knew immediately when we were there, we came to the end of a long hallway where a large door had his name on it, his symbol. I could feel the tension leave him as he opened the door and stepped aside, letting me in. I didn’t even look at the room, I turned on him immediately and fumed at him.

“Who the hell was that Zim?” I snarled. I was so angry. Why? Was I jealous? Probably. Zim had always been my friend, he had always been closer to me than anyone else. Who was this female Irken? Did they have a history? Was I jealous of their friendship? Or was it something else? My mouth was a hard line, I didn’t want to think about it. Not when I was so angry at him, about my home, about the female, about everything.

 

“Zeema.” He sighed, shutting the door behind him. “A fellow Invader. She is considered very beautiful among us Irkens, she has never shown interest in me until now. Now that I have succeeded in my mission. Now that I am Tall.” He ran his thin green hand over his face and walked past me, sitting down in a chair. I took a second to look at my surroundings. The room was centered around a large oval table with cushy chairs. There were counters around the room, with different strange Irken devices on them. There was also a large screen centered on one wall, for his meetings I assumed.

“I don’t like her touching you like that.” I said, before I could stop myself. I hadn’t really planned on saying it, it just slipped out. Before I could correct myself though, he looked up at me, smiling evilly.

“What is wrong Dib? Are you jealous of Zeema touching Zim?” He smirked. Well, he had certainly picked that up quickly.

 

“Just forget it.” I growled. “Do I have my own room? Or do you have some cage set up for me somewhere?” I asked venomously. I was livid. His smile faded as he stood up slowly, so that his face was level with mine. He walked close to me, putting his face right in front of mine. He was so close that I could feel his breath on my lips when he spoke.

“You will understand this earth slime, you will not speak to Zim that way here, not on Conventia in the Tallest’s own house. We have a special relationship, you and I, but you will speak to me as you should, as your master. Get used to that now. While we are in these rooms alone, I will be more lenient of your behavior, but when we are in front of Irken company, you will treat me with the respect that I deserve. Do you understand Dib?” He finished quietly. I stared at him for a moment, and had an extreme urge to punch him. But I swallowed my anger and nodded, letting him see the rage in my eyes.

 

“Good, also, you will not SPEAK while in the company of others unless spoken to. And when you ARE allowed to speak, you will ALWAYS speak in your native earth tongue. NEVER SPEAK MY LANGUAGE IN FRONT OF THEM.” He said slowly.

“Why?” I asked defiantly.

“Because if they find out that you can understand our tongue then they will know that you are intelligent, and we do not want that. You are Zim’s, and no one will take you from Zim.” He spat at me, angrily. “Now, no more questions. Sit here, I must put my name on you so that others will know that you are ZIM’S and were conquered by ZIM.” He said, thrusting his finger in the direction of the chair he had been in only seconds before.

 

“And how exactly are you going to do that?” I said, eyeing him suspiciously while I sat in the chair. “I am going to ink it into your skin so that it will be there forever.” He said casually, as he pulled that horrible aluminum case out of nowhere.

“Are you saying that you are going to tattoo your name into my skin?” I asked incredulously. I watched him pick up a device similar to a tattoo gun and started to get up out of the chair. His arm shot out quickly and his hand gripped my shoulder, pushing me back down into a sitting position. His sharp fingers bit into my flesh.

“Do not struggle, Dib-beast. It will be over much more quickly if you do not struggle.” He said, smiling viciously. He flipped the switch on the small machine and I heard it vibrate to life. As he held my shoulder with one hand, he started to move the thing towards my face and I freaked, struggling wildly.

“Do NOT struggle! OBEY ZIM!” He screeched, pushing me back down into the chair again.

“You are NOT coming near my face with that thing!” I yelled back, terrified. He stopped moving and leaned his face real close to mine, his eyes narrowed.

“Now Dib, do you want to struggle and cause me to accidentally stab you in the eye? Or do you want to sit quietly and be a good little earth stink and let me put my mark upon you? Because if you don’t… others may see you tonight at my party and want to borrow you for the night… and who knows what they’ll want to do with you. You had better let me mark you as my property so that I can refuse them…” He whispered into my ear, almost sweetly. I sat rigid, my eyes wide. He took my silence as my permission, and started the machine up again.

 

Roughly ten minutes later, I was sitting in the same chair, nearly crying as Zim wiped both sides of my face with a cleaning cloth. He had inked his name symbol in Irken under both of my eyes, to each side of my face, near my ears. So that now, if I were to cry, my tears would run directly out the corner of my eyes and over his symbol. He had me look in the mirror after he was finished wiping my face. The two identical black marks still stung, but I had to admit, they looked kind of… cool. My cheeks were red and swollen, but he assured me that the swelling would go down within the next few hours.

 

“Now, follow Zim. I have something for you.” He said, not looking at me. I looked up from the mirror, and at him curiously. I stood, and followed him like he had commanded me. We walked to the back of the large room, and through one of the two doors. The other led back out into the hallway but this one lead into a bedroom. It had a large human looking bed against one wall, with a nightstand on each side of it. It had Irken symbols over the walls, floors, and ceilings just like the last room, but in different places. It also had two more doors.

“That door will lead you to the urinal. I had them arrange it much like your human bathrooms, with a door so that you can access it whenever you need to.” He said, “That room is… for you.” He said quietly pointing at the other door. It was solid black and plain. I looked at him, his face was blank. Whatever he was thinking, he was trying really hard to hide it from me, which was strange because I usually had no trouble reading him. I looked away from him and walked across the room to the door. He didn’t follow. I put my hand on the door knob, pausing for a moment. Then I opened it.

 

* * *

 

 

_“Zim!” I yelled as I walked into his house. I didn’t see him or Gir anywhere so I immediately walked into the kitchen and in the elevator, pushing the button that would take me down to his lab. As the doors opened again, I saw him sitting at his computer. He was typing away again, but I didn’t bother looking up at his screen._

_“Zim what is this?” I pulled the remote control out of my pocket and held it up. He didn’t even look at me as he spoke._

_“I don’t know earth monkey. Zim cannot be bothered with such things right now. Go away.” He said, waving his hand at me, shooing me away. I ignored it._

_“Oh come on Zim. You can’t just leave this in my room and expect me not to want to know what it does.” I said, groaning, wishing that he would stop being difficult._

_“ZIM is busy doing IMPORTANT ZIM STUFF. If you want to know what it does so badly why do you not press a button and find out?” He said, his voice raising the way that it does sometimes. His antennae twitched as I stared at him. I looked down at the remote in my hand and sighed, pressing the “power” button again._

_A screen lit up on one of the many tables he had scattered about his lab. It was a few feet away from me, and I walked over to it, words came up in English. It said “Welcome Dib-thing.” I smiled to myself as I looked at the screen. It was about as big as a computer monitor, but it had two black metal boxes attached to each side. Overall, it was about the shape of a large stereo. It then came up with a list that said; songs, movies, games, books, TV shows, web, and settings. Intrigued, I touched the word ‘songs’ and a new list came up of different bands. Some I had never heard of, listed in alphabetical order, I put my finger on the screen and scrolled down to one of my favorite bands, A Perfect Circle and selected that one. Every song by a perfect circle came up on the screen. I pressed ‘The Package’, and it began playing. The two black boxes attached to the sides of the screen were apparently speakers. The thing appeared to be some kind of multimedia player. I knew that Zim knew that I loved my music, but I never thought he would do anything like this. Amazed, I looked behind me to see Zim watching me from his chair._

_“You made this?” I asked him. He nodded. I looked at the device in front of me again, hearing the words from one of my favorite songs playing. I looked back at him and smiled._

_“Thank you Zim.”_

_“It has everything on it. Every song, band, TV show, movie, everything. I figured you would need it. Do not lose it Dib.” He said seriously. I didn’t know what he meant by “need it”, but I was genuinely pleased anyway. It was the coolest thing anyone had ever given to me. I sat playing with it for hours, pulling up a chair to the table so that I wouldn’t have to stand. He stayed at his computer, clicking away at his keys while I explored the music, watched movies, and surfed the web. He never complained about how loud the music was, or how distracting the movies were. He didn’t yell at me, telling me it was late and that I should go home. He just let me be._

 

* * *

 

 

The room was a replica of my room at home, minus my bed. My desk was there, a closet with all of my clothes, my computer, all of my files that I kept on Zim, my TV, all of my movies and cds. And there on a shelf was my most prized possession, my stereo that Zim had made me for my sixteenth birthday, with its remote sitting beside it. Everything that I had ever loved from earth, all my music that I thought I had lost. It was all right here. All of my pictures that I had taken over the years, ones of Gaz and dad, ones of school and my house, ones of Zim. Everything was here. I sunk to the floor, picking up one of the boxes of pictures and looking through it, seeing Gaz’s face as she played her video game. If the tears hadn’t burned me while they ran down my face and over my tattoos, I wouldn’t have even known I was crying. I rubbed my cheeks, wincing when my sleeve ran over the tender skin. I turned around, and saw Zim standing in the doorway, watching me. I didn’t even know what to say to him.


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: For some reason I am unable to get my italics to cooperate. I don't know if this is AO3's site or if it's because I'm working from my iPad. Either way, some of the 'flashbacks' (which are supposed to italicized) are half in italics, half not. Strange. I've tried to go back and fix it, but it's not working. I do apologize. The flashback ARE separated by line breaks, so you should know when you're reading through a flashback and when you are reading what is currently happening. As soon as I can fix it, I will. Oh, the woes of not having regular access to internet. Sorry for the confusion.

Chapter 6

“For how long were you planning to destroy the earth Zim?” I asked, still sitting on the floor of my new ‘room’. He narrowed his eyes at me and raised his chin arrogantly.  
“Since I arrived at Earth of course. Zim is an Invader you know.” He said proudly. I turned towards him, still on the floor, still holding my sisters picture.  
“No, don’t lie. Really. Things changed didn’t they? You stopped trying after we… I know you stopped trying. So what happened? Why did you do it?” I said, mentally pushing him. He straightened and crossed his thin green arms, defiance at its best.  
“Zim is and INVADER, human. Conquering is what we LIVE for. It is what we do.” He said. I stood slowly, never letting go of Gaz’s picture. I stared hard at him as I spoke again, my voice rising in anger.

“That’s not YOU Zim. You changed. I know you did! You were content, there with me. I KNOW you were. What happened? What changed your mind?” I pressed.  
“Zim does not owe you any explanations human! Stop asking things that aren’t your concern!” He shouted at me, his antennae twitching wildly.  
“Tell me the truth Zim! Tell me why all of a sudden you became an Invader again! What are you hiding?” I stepped close to him this time, yelling in his face. He pushed me back violently, screeching at me.  
“Because we both would have died Dib! The Tallest’s would have destroyed earth anyway! Zim’s time was up! Destroying it was the only way to save your pathetic existence!” I stood, bracing myself of my desk, which he had pushed me into. I stared at him, my mouth hanging open .

“What do you mean, your time was up?” I stuttered.  
“Invaders only have so much time that they are given before the Tallest step in and destroy the planet themselves. If the Irken is not able to complete his mission in that amount of time, he is destroyed along with the planet. Zim’s time was up.” He said desperately, his mental defenses down. Incredulous, I stared at him for a few moments before I was able to speak.  
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” I asked him, I hated the way I sounded, as though I was pleading with him. Like I was weak. I guess I was in that moment. He recovered much more quickly than I did.  
“Because you are not one of us Dib. You are human, not an Invader, not Irken. You are inferior. You are a creature to be conquered, not an equal with whom Zim confides in.” He said superiorly, formerly, as though he was reading those lines out of a book. I shook my head at him.  
“You don’t mean that.” I said. It was not a question. His eyes softened for a moment as he looked at me, his stiff stance loosening. I reached out for him, touching the hem of his shirt, near his waist.  
“Zim. You don’t mean that.” I said again, looking into his eyes. He pulled himself away from me, out of my reach. My hand fell to my side as I watched him, his suddenly insecurity. I stepped closer to him, slowly, as if he were an animal that would attack me if I got too close.

 

* * *

 

_I walked out of my classroom, sighing, and walked towards the cafeteria for lunch. I quickened my step as I walked down the hall, thinking of him and wondering what he had brought me for lunch today. When I stepped into the huge, crowded room, I wasn’t able to walk two steps before something slammed into me, nearly knocking me off my feet. Stunned, I realized it was Zim. His arms were wrapped around me and his head was buried in my neck. I had enough time to think ‘what the fuck?’ before it really sunk into my head that Zim was hugging me. HUGGING me. In the middle of the cafeteria. Zim, who didn’t like to be touched, Zim, who had never before done ANYTHING like this with me. I think I blushed. He pulled away as suddenly as he had latched on, I could see people staring out of the corner of my eye._

_“WELL? How was that?” He asked, eyeing me curiously. I stared at him, dumbfounded._   
_“Uhh… why did you just hug me?” I asked, quietly, wondering if he had gone crazy._   
_“Zim has been experimenting with human AFFECTIONATE behavior.” He said the word ‘affectionate’ like it was a dirty thing. “I am wondering why you humans seem to enjoy it so much.” He said casually, leading the way to our usual table. I followed him, trying to sort through his newest obsession._   
_“Zim, just out of curiosity, have you EVER seen me HUG ANYBODY?” I asked, deadpan. He thought for a minute before responding._   
_“No.”_   
_“So what makes you think that I would be a good subject to test your theories on? I have no previous experience to compare it to. I don’t LIKE hugs. I don’t LIKE human affection.” I said, lying._   
_“Then why did your heart-thing speed up its beating-ness like they do when humans are happy when I hugged you?” It took me a minute to work out what he said before I managed to stutter;_   
_“How did you know tha-“_   
_“Zim tested it.” He pulled out a small Irken machine with a little flat end that he must have put on my neck to check my pulse. I blushed again, speechless._   
_“HA! See? Zim was RIGHT. I TOLD you I was amazing. Dib likes affections from Zim.” He said, his face set in pure egotistical satisfaction. Dumbfounded, I just stared at him._   
_“Want Zim’s sandwich?” He asked pleasantly._

 

* * *

 I put my hand on his arm lightly, trying not to scare him. I knew how touchy he was. For the most part, if he didn’t initiate the contact, he would not tolerate it. He glanced at my arm, then back up at me. He had backed up to the door and was pressed against it. I had never done anything like this before with him, but I had thought about it. Now was as good a time as ever, I thought.

His antennae twitched, but only a little. I wanted to do something to show how I felt about him, about this situation, but I didn’t know what. He was so different from me. Once, when he had dropped something on accident, I tried to pick it up for him and he freaked. He screamed at me in Irken and kicked me out of his house. So I was a little touchy about this kind of stuff.  
“Tell me you didn’t mean it.” I ordered, whispering. Our faces were only a few inches apart, I was leaning towards him, trying not to touch him too much.  
“Huh?” He said dumbly, I smirked when I realized that he was so distracted that he had completely forgotten what we were talking about. I brought my other hand up, and touched his shirt again, over his stomach. I decided to change tactics.  
“Zim? Tell me how Irkens show affection.” I demanded, still whispering. I leaned my face in close to him, and touched my cheek to his, softly. I felt his hand come up and rest on my shoulder and smiled to myself inwardly. Just as I was about to speak, we heard;  
“ _Lord Zim_?” We both jumped at least a foot in the air, Zim practically ran out of the room and back into the main bedroom. I stayed in my room, leaning against my desk and clutching my chest, trying to slow my heart.

“ _It is almost time for your party_.” The soldier said. I heard a shuffle and a short squeak and walked quickly out of the door to see him holding the soldier by the throat.  
“ _Good. Now this is your warning; do not ever come into my rooms without direct permission from ZIM, do you understand soldier_?” He asked venomously, leaning over the terrified Irken. He nodded his head violently before Zim dropped him back onto the floor. He scrambled to his feet and ran out of the door. Zim watched him go, then turned and looked at me. The look was curious, calculating. We stared at each other for a moment, my chest was still heaving, before he waved his hand at me.  
“Dib-beast must dress for Zim’s party. I have laid clothes out for you in your closet. Go change.” He ordered, turning from me. It was obvious that our moment was over. I wasn’t really worried about it. We would get more chances for affection.

 

* * *

 

_“Dib-stink?” He asked._

_“Hmm?” I said, sleepily. I was lying down on my back, on his roof. I had been watching the stars but my eyes were closed now. He was sitting a few feet away with his telescope, jotting down planet coordination’s or something. I had only been half listening when he had told me. We had been up here for a few hours, I had had a bad day at school, apparently principals don’t like it when you beat up other students, even when said student was harassing your best friend. Zim’s black eye stood out against the lamp he had sitting next to his small Irken computer. It still pissed me off when I saw it._

_“There is that new movie coming out, the one about the ALIENS.” I could almost hear his eyes roll when he said it. I smiled to myself as he continued. “We should go see it in that human theatre. I need to see what you earth monkey’s think of aliens. Your perceptions of us are always so… amusing.” He scoffed. I couldn’t help but smile to myself, but I tried my best to hide it. I knew he’d flip if he saw me smiling. I could just see him freaking out over a smile, thinking I was laughing at him or something stupid like that._   
_“Sure, why not.” I said. I couldn’t help but feel happy then, in that moment. Zim knew how much I liked all that paranormal stuff. Just like I knew how much he hated going out in public, but he did it anyway, with me. I never complained when he didn’t want to go out, I was content to stay at his house for the most part anyway. I felt at home here. Comfortable._   
_“Good.” He said, I could hear him typing on his computer. I opened my eyes again, looking up at the night sky._

_“Hey Zim?” I said._   
_“What is it NOW Dib?” He grouched halfheartedly._   
_“How is your eye?” I asked quietly. I didn’t look at him, I didn’t know how he would react at my showing concern. He was quiet for a moment before he mumbled grumpily, so quiet that I almost didn’t hear what he said._   
_“STUPID human, thinking that he could best ZIM.” The rest of his miniature tirade was unintelligible but I understood the gist of it. I smiled again._   
_“Just checking.” I said._

* * *

 


	7. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I lugged my beautiful monstrosity over to a friends house so that I could leech their internet for a few hours, so I'm uploading two chapters. I hope you enjoy them! Please review.
> 
> (I also fixed the problem with the italics in the last chapter. :3)

Chapter 7

I had changed into the clothes that Zim had thrown together for me, all the while grumbling about how he was like some bossy housewife, which made me laugh, which made Zim freak out and accuse me of everything from making fun of him to stealing his favorite pencil when he wasn’t looking. I wasn’t even aware that he _had_ a favorite pencil.

After we were done arguing, I went into the bathroom and wiped my face again, making sure none of the ink had smeared. When I walked back out, he was in the process of removing his red shirt. I stopped in mid step and almost lost balance, too stunned to remember that in order to _not_ fall and bust my face open, I had to put the other foot _down_. I watched as he slid the red shirt over his head, and his pale green skin was exposed to me. I had never seen him unclothed before. He saw me looking and narrowed his eyes as he turned around to face me. He had no nipples and no belly button, just smooth green skin. Without thinking, I took a step towards him, mesmerized by the possibility of a chance to touch him in a place on his body that I had never seen before. He backed up quickly, catching my attention and making me stop.

“What are you doing?” He asked suspiciously. I looked up at his face and stuttered.  
“Nothing. Sorry.” I said, guiltily. I should have known better.  
“You were going to try and touch Zim.” He said suspiciously. It wasn’t a question, he said it as though it was a fact. Which it was, but still. He didn’t know that.  
“No I was… I was uh…” I said, completely at a loss for an explanation. I gave up and tried to recover by asking; “So what’s this party for huh?”

He immediately smiled and started spouting out some bullshit about it being held in celebration of him conquering earth and about how he was truly an Invader and how none could best him. I could see another of his famous rants coming on and decided that I would sit down on the bed and wait it out. I nodded at all the appropriate times and “ooh”ed and “ahh”ed with plenty of “I see” thrown in the mix. He was a very animated speaker, his hands went in all different directions as he explained to me exactly how and why he was so awesome. I enjoyed the show for a while, seeing him rage without a shirt on was more entertaining than I was willing to admit.

When he mentioned earth again, I thought of what he had said, and how he had risked his own life to save mine. All the anger I had felt about him destroying my home was gone now, now that I knew that he didn’t have a choice. Now that I knew that he really could have left me there to die, but he didn’t. I watched him walk around the room and gripe about different things, not really paying attention to what he was saying.

 

* * *

 

 

_“Dib, why have you never… dated?” He said, making a face like he might be sick when he said it. I laughed._  
 _“Where in the world did that come from?” I asked. We were walking home from school, I had been complaining about how much homework we had. Our stupid teachers were trying to “prepare us” for our eleventh grade finals, which I thought was pointless. Zim and I both had perfect grades. Though the fact that I did all of his homework probably had something to do with his gpa. The question had caught me off guard._

_“All of the other humans in our grade are doing it. Why aren’t you?” He asked suspiciously. I had the weird feeling that he was testing me. Which he did, a lot. As though he was testing my loyalty. That or lying a trap, which he also did a lot._  
 _“Because I think it’s stupid. If, and I mean IF, I find the person that I should be with, then I feel like I’ll know and I’ll probably spend all my time with them, because that’s how it should be.” I said._  
 _“So instead, you spend all of your time with me.” He said. I thought about it for a minute, then looked at him. He was looking at me, waiting for an answer._  
 _“…Yeah.” I said. “I guess so.”_

 

* * *

 

 

“Dib.” He said, standing in front of me, staring down at me. I snapped my head up and looked at him. I had been zoning out so bad that I kind of forgot to pay attention.  
“Sorry.” I said, straightening up. “What were you saying?”  
“Zim said it was time to go. Stop drooling on yourself and get up.” He said, his antennae twitching. He had put a shirt back on, I noticed. Damn.

“Alright.” I sighed, standing up. I followed him out of the room and through the meeting room, then back out into the hallway. He shut and locked his door behind us, then looked at me.  
“Now remember Dib, no speaking unless you are directly spoken to.” He said seriously, before starting off down the hall. I followed him and we walked for what seemed like forever. The place was huge, hallways and stairs went on forever. Everything was silent while we walked, until we came up to two huge doors. There was a sort of buzzing sound coming from them as we walked up to them, and when Zim opened them I realized that the buzzing was actually hundreds of Irkens walking around in one huge room, talking to each other animatedly. The room was full of greens and purples and pinks and reds, the color scheme was similar to Zim’s house on earth, and the new rooms he had now. Many of them turned when we walked in and began cheering. Zim smiled proudly and walked into the room. The both of us were taller than anyone here. So many Irkens came up and introduced themselves to him, touching his antennae and chatting pleasantly. I couldn’t remember all of their names. One came up to him though, discreetly shoving others out of the way, and I definitely knew this one.

 _“Zim, it’s about time you got here, this place has been so boring without you.”_ Zeema said sweetly. I felt that urge to punch her again.  
 _“My apologies Zeema, I was busy.”_ He said back as she touched his antennae. She looked at me then, finally, studying me as though I was under a microscope.  
 _“And what is this? A specimen from your mission?”_ She asked. She stared at me shamelessly, from my boots all the way up to my hair. She was kind of freaking me out.  
 _“Yes, his race are called humans. Nasty, stupid things. Though this one wasn’t too bad.”_ He added, as though it was an afterthought. I struggled to keep my face expressionless. She stared at me for a moment more before finally concluding;  
 _“He’s funny looking.”_ She turned back to Zim then and purred sweetly. “So, what are your plans for this evening?”  
 _“I am going to enjoy my banquet and then retire to my room. I am tired.”_ He said, sounding bored. I glanced around us to see other Irkens looking at the two of them, some whispering to each other behind their fingers. I looked back at Zim as Zeema replied;  
 _“Well that doesn’t sound like any fun. You should come stay in my rooms with me tonight.”_ She said, smiling. As though she had asked if he was hungry. My fingers twitched.  
 _“No, I am tired. If you will excuse me?”_ He asked, not waiting for an answer. He walked away abruptly and waded through the crowd of Irkens before stopping in front of two females. They were standing a little apart from the rest, not speaking, just watching. They were tall, almost as tall as Zeema. When Zim and I walked up to them, one smiled at him, but the other just stared at me. She surprised me with her stare, where most Irkens that I had seen had red or purple eyes, this one had bright blue eyes. The other had red, and she spoke to Zim.

 _“Hello Zim, Invader of my heart, how have you been?”_ She spoke quietly, and directly to him. The blue eyed Irken continued to ignore him and stare at me. He glanced back at me before he answered her.  
 _“Hello Jeza, Invader of my heart. I have been well. I have been conquering.”_ He said.  
 _“Conquering, or conquered?”_ The blue eyed one asked, never taking her eyes off of me. He looked at her then and spoke.  
 _“Conquering, Hak. And how are you?”_ He answered. The blue eyed Irken, Hak, turned to look at him then.

 _“We have been the same as always.”_ She said, apparently speaking for the both of them. One of her antennae twitched to the side and touched Jeza’s, they stayed touching for a few seconds before Hak pulled away. It seemed like a very intimate gesture to me.  
 _“Your zakri appears to be very intelligent.”_ Jeza said, looking at me. I looked at her, surprised. She smiled. “What is its name?” She asked Zim. He looked at me and nodded. I looked back at her and spoke, quietly so that only the three of them could hear.  
 _“Dib. My name is Dib. It’s nice to meet you, Jeza, Hak.”_ Jeza smiled in satisfaction before looking back a Zim.

 _“Pazak is moving to become Tallest.”_ She said, her expression turning serious. Zim looked at her, but didn’t speak. _“He is going to eradicate all zakri. He believes them to be disgusting and a shame to our race. Along with many other things that some of us are attached to.”_ She finished, her antennae reaching over and touching Hak’s lightly.  
 _“We are staying out of it. He has already tried to separate our rooms, he is adamant about us continuing to breed naturally. He despises the same sex couples.”_ Hak added.  
 _“Why are the Tallest tolerating him?”_ Zim asked.  
 _“He is too tall. Soon he will be as tall as they are, then they will be hard pressed to stop him.”_ Jeza said, her voice venomous.  
 _“I will watch out for him. Thank you for the warning.”_ Zim said. Jeza nodded as Hak said;  
 _“Keep a close eye on your Dib. Pazak will not hesitate to have him dealt with, if he is given the opportunity.”_

Zim nodded before he walked away from them. I looked at them, Jeza smiled at me as though we shared an inside joke, but Hak just looked at me thoughtfully. I nodded to them before turning to follow Zim. We mingled for a while longer, many more Irkens came up to him to introduce themselves, but he only halfheartedly spoke to them.

By the time we finally left the party, I was exhausted and ready to be back in our room so that I could speak to him. We walked down all those long hallways again, though this time we passed a few Irkens along the way. They all stopped and bowed to Zim, but he ignored them. When we reached our rooms, he unlocked the door and held it open while I walked in, then he walked in behind me and shut it. He walked past me, through the meeting room and into the bedroom. I followed him and asked;  
“Who were they? Jeza and Hak, I mean.” He sat on the bed and began taking off his boots while he spoke.  
“They were two fellow Invaders, and very goods ones. They have conquered many planets, but always together. One will not go anywhere without the other. Hak is especially talented. Jeza is very protective of her.” He said.  
“Are they a couple?” I asked curiously.  
“They are…” He searched around for the word, “lovers, yes. If that is what you mean.”  
“Even though they are the same gender?” I asked, testing him. Whether or not Irkens were bisexual was a question that I had been pondering for quite a while, though I was pretty sure I already knew the answer.  
“Yes, gender does not matter to an Irken, for the most part. Our Tallest are a couple as well.” He said, setting his boots aside and standing up.

“What did Jeza mean, _‘Invader of my Heart’_?” I asked, watching him as he walked across the room. He touched one of the Irken symbols on the wall and it opened, revealing a closet where all of his clothes were hung.  
“It is a term Irkens use to identify someone that we are close to, someone that we trust.” He said, taking another shirt out of his closet before closing it. I watched him as he changed again, taking advantage of his being undressed to stare at his naked skin, though all I ever saw was his chest and back. I still appreciated it.  
“It is late and Zim must work. Dib must sleep now.” He said, gesturing to the bed.  
“You’re not going to sleep?” I asked him.  
“Zim is ZIM, therefore AMAZING, therefore, I do not need trivial things such as sleep. But being the weak earthling that you are, you DO need sleep. So sleep Dib-beast, and we will continue our conversations when you wake.” He said, waving his hand at me in dismissal. I sighed and nodded, letting him turn on the lamp so that he could turn the brighter overhead light off. When he walked into the meeting room where all of his equipment was, he turned to shut the door.

“Wait, leave it open.” I said. He looked at me suspiciously before asking;  
“Why?” He asked.  
“Because I want to spy on you while you work.” I teased. “Really though, I just want the door open, I’m going to turn that lamp off and it’ll be too dark and quiet in here with the door closed.” I explained, before he had a chance to freak out. He just stared at me for a moment, with his ‘one eye narrowed, one eye wide’ stare before he left the room, leaving the door cracked like I asked. I smiled as I pulled my shirt over my head and crawled into the bed. I could hear him already, typing away on one of his computers. As I laid there listening to him, I wondered what the hell was going to happen to us now. My whole life had changed, and I had no idea how much of a change it was going to be. Here I was on a whole other planet, living with Zim as his freakin slave. And for some reason… I wasn’t really complaining about it.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to point out once again that I wrote this like three years ago... So it's outdated and not up to my newer standards. I do have two other stories on this site, both from BBC's Sherlock. If you're into that, you can check it out.

Chapter 8

I woke up with that feeling of grogginess, as if I didn’t get enough sleep. I had no idea what time it was or how long I had been sleeping, I didn’t even know if they paid attention to time here. I was also very hungry. I sat up, running my fingers through my hair. I knew it was sticking straight up again, but I didn’t care. I pushed my glasses up my nose. I had a bad habit of falling asleep with them on, I was really surprised that I hadn’t broken them by now. I looked around the room, I was alone and I couldn’t hear Zim in the next room. I got out of bed and walked to my room, opening the door and going into my closet. I pulled my shirt over my head and threw it on the floor. Then I pulled my pants down and grabbed some fresh clothes from my closet and threw them over my arm, walking out of the small room in just my boxes. I stopped in the doorway when I saw him sitting lazily on the bed. His eyes widened momentarily when he saw my state of undress, then narrowed again.  
“Why is the Dib naked?” He asked curiously, cocking his head to one side and looking me over shamelessly. I frowned at him.  
“I’m not naked. I have boxers on. What are you doing?” I asked. He side and waved his hand in the air distractedly.  
“I heard you get up, I came to tell you to get ready to go out.” He said. “Zim has THINGS of a very important nature to show you.”  
“Can I shower first?” I asked, wondering what the hell he had planned now.  
“Eh? Yes yes, go ahead and SHOWER. But be quick! Zim has THI-“  
“Yeah I know, things of a very important nature to show me. Hey Zim, I’m really hungry. What the hell am I going to eat? I don’t know about your Irken food.” I said, subconsciously rubbing my stomach. His gaze was drawn to the movement and his eyes lingered on my stomach for a moment before saying;

“Don’t worry DIB, Zim will put… things in your belly later. But NOW! Now you must get ready to go out.” He said. He stood then and walked out the door, but not before adding one more glance. Feeling a little self-conscious, I walked into the bathroom and set my clothes on the counter. I looked in the mirror and was surprised for a moment when I saw the tattoos. I had forgotten about them. There was a little stubble on my chin but nowhere else. I didn’t really grow facial hair, which I thought was awesome because I didn’t like it anyway.

I started the water and stepped into the shower, feeling a little nostalgic when I saw that Zim had also brought my usual shampoo and soap. It amazed me how much effort and attention he put into this. It also made me wonder again how long he had been planning it.

 

* * *

 

 

_The thunder woke me up, it was loud and followed immediately by a bright flash of lightning. My room was momentarily lit up but the whiteness, I looked over at the clock and saw that it was a little after two am. I sighed and rolled over, aggravated and knowing that I wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep. Usually the rain comforted me, but for some reason I was wide awake. I laid there for a while, watching the rain pound on my window. When I heard the shrill ring of my phone, I frowned, wondering who the hell would call me at this hour. I reached over and grabbed it from the nightstand and glanced at the number. It was one that I knew by heart. I flipped it open quickly, jerking it to my ear._  
 _“Zim?” I asked, my voice rough with sleep._  
 _“Dib! Zim needs your assistance! Now!” He shouted at me, he sounded panicked. Worried, I sat up and spoke again._

_“What’s wrong?” I asked, suddenly anxious._  
 _“The- ah!” I heard his quick footsteps and Gir’s hysterical screaming. I wasn’t worried about Gir, he screamed like that over anything, but Zim’s panic was freaking me out._  
 _“Zim what’s wrong?” I half yelled at him. I got out of bed and bent over, picking my pants up off of the floor._  
 _“My house! My house is LEAKING! And its- ugh! Its DRIPPING ON ZIM! Get over here now and FIX IT! Ahh!” He screamed, a high pitched, terrified sound. I knew of his issues with water, it was harmful to him. A sudden horrible mental image of him getting rained on and melting flashed through my head. I almost ripped my pants trying to get them on._  
 _“Hold on Zim, I’m on my way.” I said, my words jumbling together in a rush. I flipped the phone closed and ran out of my bedroom door, not bothering with a shirt or shoes. I ran blindly through the house and out the door. My pale skin was instantly soaked, it wasn’t raining, it was POURING. I couldn’t see, water was covering my glasses but it was okay. I didn’t need to see, I knew the route to Zim’s house like the back of my hand. When I reached his front gate, I could hear him screaming, I was surprised his neighbors hadn’t called the cops. But then again, I was sure that they had heard worse coming from his house._

_“Zim! Where are you?!” I yelled for him as I ran through his front door. I found him in the kitchen, on top of the dining table. Lightning must have struck his roof, because there was a large hole right over his living room. Water was raining into his house, covering his floor. He couldn’t get to the trash can or the elevator without stepping in it. I ran to him and jerked him off of the table and threw him over my shoulder. He yelled at me but I ignored him like a pro. I ran around the hole and to the elevator, ramming the button for his base with my fist. The doors closed on us, and the elevator began to carry us down but there was still water on the floor, so I didn’t put him down._

_“Dib! What are you doing! Put down ZIM!” He yelled, hitting my back with his small fists._  
 _“Shut up Zim. I’ll put you down as soon as we’re away from the water.” I said. The doors opened and we stepped into his base. I walked away from the elevator and the little bit of water that had poured out and onto the floor. When I was far away enough, I put him down._  
 _“STUPID DIB! Zim told you to fix the LEAKING! Not run away with me!” He yelled._  
 _“Oh stop bitching Zim! Did you WANT to stand on the table all night!?! You were only a few feet away from that water, all it would have taken would have been for the wind to change directions and you would have gotten SOAKED. I saved your life.” I said smugly, crossing my arms. He stared at me for a moment, thinking. It was not the reaction I expected. Finally he replied;_  
 _“Fine Dib. Then next time we are in mortal danger, Zim will save YOUR life.”_

 

* * *

 

 

When I had showered and dressed, I walked out of the bathroom and through the bedroom and into the meeting room. I smiled when I saw him bent of his computer obsessively. He was so absorbed in his work that I was able to creep up behind him and stick my head over his shoulder.  
“What are you working on?” I said, from only inches away. He freaked out, jumping and hiding his screen from me. I hadn’t really been focused on whatever he had been working on, but his reaction definitely peaked my interest.  
“Eh? Uh nothing! Nothing at all! Are you ready now Dib-worm?” He said, obviously trying to distract me. I stared at him suspiciously for a minute before deciding to let it slide. I could always hack his computer later when he wasn’t paying attention.  
“Sure. What are we doing?” I asked.  
“Zim is taking you around Conventia. And the Dib needs FOOD STUFFS in his belly.” He said, throwing my long black coat at me. I pulled it on while he continued.  
“Since you are living here with Zim now, this is your home too. And Zim must show Dib all of its GREATNESS!” He walked towards the door and I followed, suppressing a smile.

We left our rooms and walked down some more hallways and up and down some more stairs. He pointed out things while we walked, different symbols and some strange looking machines and even some weird potted plants, and explained to me what they were and why they were so AMAZING. I listened silently, just enjoying this time with him. I don’t know why it felt so different than all the other times we had been together. Maybe it was because this time it was like we were more than just friends. I wasn’t sure, but I knew that I liked it.

I knew that there was something going on between us. I don’t remember exactly when I had figured it out, but I knew that my obsession had some kind of underlying attraction. The recent experimental touches and fierce jealousy had only reinforced my conviction. So I was attracted to an alien. So what? It wasn’t like there were any humans left for me. I hadn’t ever cared about anyone else anyway. It had always been Zim. I had made my peace with that already.

But it wasn’t until now that I felt like something might actually come of it. Zim was always so distant, so closed off. Yes, we were close. Yes, I knew he trusted me more than anyone else. But our relationship had always been complicated. From enemies to friends, to master to slave. We had never been anything more than that. There was always that slight tension there when our eyes caught, but I had never acted on it. I didn’t know how he would respond. But now I wanted to try. Now I let myself stare at him shamelessly as he gestured around the grand house, talking quietly but with enthusiasm. Now I dared to hope.

After a while we reached a giant food court, Irkens LOVED to eat. There were some places where the food didn’t seem too bad, but there were other places that I knew I would sooner starve than eat at. We talked while we sat down and ate. I asked him if there were any paranormal things on this planet, and he told me of their different mythical creatures. Irkens didn’t have such things as ghosts or bigfoot, but they had other things that were just as fascinating, such as Zorg Monster that was said to eat Irkens smeets. Pretty weird stuff.

When we were done eating, he said there was one more place that he wanted to show me. We left the food court and walked down a few more hallways (they never end!) and finally came to two huge doors guarded by two Irkens soldiers. Zim nodded to the soldiers, who bowed at him before moving to open the doors. I looked at Zim, puzzled, but he stared ahead and waited for the doors to open. As they were pulled open and we walked through, my jaw dropped. We were outside, the sky was dark and littered with bright stars. There were three large moons scattered across, lighting up the grounds around us. We were in some kind of garden. There were little paths and trails between small pools of black water and patches of something like white sand. Strange Irken trees and shrubs grew here and there, they were the strangest colors, colors that I had no name for. It was beautiful.

The soldiers had shut the door behind us, and as far as I could tell we were alone in the silver light. We started walking down the path and Zim spoke.  
“Conventia is like our home planet Irk, it orbits our sun much more slowly than your earth did. It is dark for a long time here before you see the light of day. Three months of earth time is one night on our planets. “ He said, looking up at the moons. The tiny dots of light were mirrored in his large eyes. We walked in silence for a few minutes before I asked;  
“Zim, would it really be so bad to be Tallest?” It’s what you always wanted? I don’t understand, what changed your mind?” I watched him as he thought for a moment. He walked with his hands clasped together behind his back, with his half hearted Irken soldier steps.  
“Zim wants other things, things that are unattainable as Tallest.” He said simply. He sounded so different then, and it really sunk in, just how much we had been through and how much we had grown. We were so different now, than what we were when we were kids.  
“But is what you’re giving up worth what you want?” I asked him seriously. He looked at me, really looked at me before he answered.

“Zim knows what he wants Dib-stink. Do not presume you understand my AMAZING brain.” He said, some of his old personality showing through. I smiled at him and just nodded. I was curious as to what it was that he wanted, that he couldn’t have if he were Tallest. A small hopeful part of me suspected, but I tried not to think too much on it. I knew he wouldn’t tell me if I asked.

We walked for a few more minutes in silence, enjoying the scenery, before I bumped into him on accident. He looked at me narrowing his eyes. I looked at him, getting an idea and trying to judge his state of mind. We were alone but he wasn’t always in a perceptive mood and I didn’t want to push him. We kept walking but I walked a little closer, our shoulders brushing. He didn’t react negatively, so I brushed my fingers against his. He looked at me, but we kept walking. When I slid my fingers through his, I waited for him to freak out but he didn’t. He let me hold his hand as we walked and I tried to hide my smile. I wanted to move closer to him and try more, but I didn’t want to push my luck. When we came to a dead end, with the path stopping and overlooking a bed of strangely beautiful Irken flowers, he leaned against my shoulder but didn’t look at me. I sighed, content but also wanting more but too nervous to go for it. I suddenly realized that the reason that this time with him had felt so different was because it felt like a date. I had never been on a date, but this is what I imagine it would feel like.

I was nervous as we stood there, like a high school boy on his first date. Which… was kind of what this was actually. I wondered what was going through his head and was about to say something, anything, to break the silence when he turned and looked at me. His face was _very_ close. Suddenly overcome with the urge to kiss him, I turned my body towards him and put one of my hands on his side, gently. When he didn’t push me away I leaned in even closer, looking into his red eyes. He seemed torn, unwilling or unable to decide, so I decided for him. I was tired of this half assed bullshit. I wanted him. I leaned in and kissed him softly on his green lips, chastely. To my intense delight, he kissed me back. I smiled and kissed him again, this time a little harder and wrapped my arm around his waist. He brought his hands up to my chest, wrapping his sharp fingers in my shirt. I opened my mouth and just as I ran the tip of my tongue over his bottom lip, we heard a cough. We jumped apart as though we had been electrocuted. Turning wildly, I saw a tall Irken, though not as tall as Zim. He was staring at us with narrowed eyes. I instantly disliked him. I was trying to catch my breath and was about to say something rude when Zim spoke first.  
 _“Hello Pazak.”_


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Today I am at my in-laws house, with my beautiful monstrosity, to upload chapters. Be grateful ZADR-addicted slime! No, really though, it's been bugging me that I started off with two uploads a week and now I'm reduced to uploading whenever I can manage to get online. So here are two more chapters for your enjoyment. <3

Chapter 9

Pazak just radiated supreme asshole. He was a few inches shorter than Zim and I, and he was dressed impeccably in Invaders finest. He stood severely straight, as though it would make him taller. His eyes were purple and narrowed, his mouth set in a disgusted frown. He had that look on his face that said that he had just realized that he had stepped in dog shit, and he was not very happy about it.

At Zim’s acknowledgement, he held his head up even higher. I could tell that he was not happy at all about having to look up to us, and he was trying his hardest to make himself as level as possible.  
 _“Hello Zim. What a coincidence, meeting you here.”_ He sneered.  
 _“Yes. Coincidence. Why are you here?_ ” Zim asked, suspicion dripping from his voice. The two of them faced off, and I suddenly got the feeling that they were already familiar with each other.  
 _“This is your zakri?”_ He asked, his narrowed eyes roaming over my face. I saw him study Zim’s symbols on my cheeks.  
 _“Yes. This is the Dib-human. He is mine.”_ Zim said, I could tell he had tried to even out his voice, but I could still hear a hint of anger and discomfort underneath the calm in his tone.

 _“He is an ugly creature.”_ Pazak said, looking over me again. Zim’s eyes narrowed.  
 _“That is why he is Zim’s zakri, not Pazak’s. If you will excuse us, we are leaving.”_ Zim said, simmering. He walked passed Pazak and I followed him, giving Pazak a dirty look as I passed.  
 _“Don’t get too attached to your zakri Zim. There will be no more need for them when I become Tallest.”_ He said to our backs as we walked away. I expected Zim to retort, but he kept on walking.

We didn’t speak on our way back. I knew he was fuming, and I didn’t want to set him off. At least not now, not in public. His walk was stiff, his movements jerky as we made our way back to our rooms. After we walked through the door and he locked it behind us, I waited for him to start ranting. It didn’t take long.  
“Stupid horrible Pazak! He thinks he is so special! He thinks he will be tallest, he thinks that he will rule the MIGHTY IRKEN RACE?!?! Well he WON’T! Zim will not let him!” He raged, throwing his fist into the air as he spoke.  
“And how are you going to stop him?” I asked. I wasn’t sure how I felt about the possibility of Zim becoming Tallest. I had the feeling that I wouldn’t be able to be with him if he did. He didn’t look at me but he did answer me as he sat down at his computer.  
“Zim is working on it…. Working on it… UGH! Pazak is not qualified to become Tallest! He is… ugh, he is not good enough! Pazak is a weak, stupid Irken! He would be a HORRIBLE Tallest!” He raged as he brought up his computers and began typing violently. I sighed when I realized that he was about to absorb himself in his work again. He mumbled to himself some more, half in English and half in Irken. He didn’t notice as I left the room. I walked into the bedroom and then into my room.

I looked around the room. Most of my things were in boxes, packed haphazardly by him. It took me a few minutes to find what I was looking for, my sketch pad and pencils. I put them under one arm and grabbed my stereo that Zim made me with the other. I left the room with them, walking through the bedroom and back into the meeting room. He hadn’t moved from his computers, he kept checking all three screens and typing furiously. I set my things down on the large table that was in the center of the room and glanced at him. I pulled the table a little to one side, giving me a good view of his profile and then sat down. I arranged my stereo so that it faced me, and turned it on. I brought up my favorites list and hit shuffle and play. He didn’t move when the music started. He was in his own little world. I opened my sketch book to a clean page and grabbed a pencil. I started sketching him, his profile and his rigid edges. He was still stiff and angry and jerky. I tried to capture his aggravation in the picture. So far, I was succeeding brilliantly.

 

* * *

 

 

_“Dib-stink, what is this?” He asked, picking up one of the multiple folders on the floor in my room. I was sitting at my desk doing our homework because he refused to do it himself. I turned around and glanced at the file and went back to my work._   
_“It’s probably another file on you. I’ve got hundreds of them. You know that.” I said, not really caring and trying to concentrate on the equation that I was working on. When I finished with my homework, I had to do Zim’s in a completely different handwriting. I had had him write out every letter of my alphabet so that I could copy his handwriting. It was actually pretty genius of me, no one would be able to tell that I had done it. He was silent for a moment while I worked, and I could barely make out the sounds of pages turning as he looked through the file. After a few minutes, I began to get more interested in what he was doing. It was an odd thing, for him to sit silently and look at something like that. Usually he would have some comment about how my “stupid earth brain” was all wrong and how I didn’t understand him at all. I finished the equation and turned in my chair to look at him. He was sitting on the floor, absorbed in the papers that he was holding. When I took a closer look at the folder, trying to see what number it was, I saw that it was number A-327. It was not one of my study folders. It was one of my art folders. I suddenly knew what he was looking at and I jumped out of my chair and tore the papers away from him. He looked up at me angrily._

_“Dib! Give those back! Zim was looking!” He held out his hands in a “gimmie” sort of way that would have been kind of cute if I had not been freaking out._   
_“These are private Zim. You can’t see them.” I huffed, stuffing the pages back into their folder. He stared at me angrily for a minute before he struck fast, ripping the folder out of my hands._   
_“Hey!” I said, trying to grab them back and failing. He jumped up and away from me, and onto my bed. I followed him, grabbing his arm and causing us both to lose balance and fall into a tangle of arms and legs onto the bed. I wrapped my legs around his to hold him still and tried to grab the pages but he held them just out of my reach. We were both breathing heavily as we wrestled over the papers. His head fell against the bed at one point and his wig fell off, revealing his long black antennae. I grabbed the arm that was holding the folder and pulled it towards me, as he used his other hand to try and push it away._

_“Give them back Zim!” I grumbled as his hand pressed into my face, slurring my speech._   
_“No! They are pictures of ZIM so they are ZIM’s pictures!” He said back, not giving in. I finally stopped struggling and he eyed me suspiciously, I’m sure he thought I was trying to trick him into lowering his guard so that I could grab them. Which I did consider, by the way._   
_“Why do you want them? They’re just sketches.” I said, still entangled with him. He looked at me carefully._   
_“The Dib made these?” He asked._   
_“I drew them, yes.” I huffed, sulking. He continued to stare at me for a second before asking;_   
_“Why?” I moved a few inches away so that I wasn’t so close to his face, so that I could see him better._   
_“Because I like to draw. And I see you all the time… and I mean come on Zim, you ARE an alien. That’s not something normal, it’s not something people usually see on a day to day basis. And I just… I don’t know, I enjoy drawing you I guess.” I grumbled, kind of embarrassed. He just stared at me, but not with an angry or negative expression, he stared as if he was thinking, as if he was studying me._

_“You have more of these sketches?” He asked finally. I nodded. “Show Zim.” He demanded. I got up off the bed and walked across the room to one of my file boxes. I got all of my art folders out and proceeded to spend the next two hours showing him all of the sketches that I had done of him over the years. There were quite a few of them. He looked at them all, absorbed in them. I already knew that Zim was a very self-centered person, if you could call him a person, but he was just CAPTIVATED by these images that I had created. I had pictures of him sleeping, of him working and ranting. I had pictures of him while he watched TV or while he ate. I had separate ones focusing just on his face, or his hands or his clothes. Of every part of him. I was a little obsessed. … okay more than a little._

_I had never seen him like this, with his eyes wide in wonderment like they were. He seemed almost… happy. My fingers twitched as I got that overwhelming urge to draw him. I moved away from him a few inches, subtly. It amazed me that he didn’t notice, I guessed he was just that intrigued by them. I grabbed my sketch book from my bedside table and a random pencil that was laying on the floor under the bed. I sat back, leaning against the bed and began to draw him. He was laying on the floor, on his stomach looking at all the pages spread out around him. I drew his outline quickly but didn’t finish it, I could always finish that up later. Right now, this moment, I wanted to capture that look on his face. I drew him lying there, with his eyes wide in innocent wonder, his mouth open slightly because he was so trapped by what he was seeing. Like he had never seen anything like it. I even drew all the pages around him. When I was finished, I looked from him to the picture and smiled, extremely satisfied with the result. I handed it to him, putting it on the floor right in front of him. He gaped at it, then looked at me. I smiled at him. He looked back at the picture and said;_

_“For Zim?” He asked. I hesitated, not wanting to part with it, but almost immediately went to him and bent down over the picture and wrote on the bottom corner;_   
_“For Zim, from Dib. 11th grade.” He smiled at it then, a real smile and picked it up. He held it carefully and his pak opened up, bringing out one of his long, extended mechanical hands. It grabbed the picture delicately and pulled it back into the pak, shutting it in. I never saw it again after that._

 

* * *

 

 

I drew different small pictures of him for a few hours. He stayed so caught up in his work that I doubt he even knew I was there. He had calmed down, now instead of being agitated he was just absorbed in his work, and ignored me. I didn’t know how long had passed but I had decided to just wait it out, wait for him to get finished or become tired. I was still drawing when we heard a knock at the door. Zim looked up from his screens for the first time in hours. I didn’t get up, instead watched him as he got up and walked to the door. I saw her bright blues eyes before I saw anything else. Neither of them said anything, Zim just let her in. Her strange Irken eyes took in his meeting room as he closed the door behind her.

 _“Hello Hak, Invader of my Heart.”_ He said, watching her.  
 _“Hello Zim, Invader of my Heart. I have come with a message.”_ She said, monotone. He waited for her to finish but she didn’t. Instead she asked; “What is that noise?”  
 _“It is the Dib’s earth music.”_ He said. She looked at me then, and walked over to me slowly. She looked over my shoulder and down at the drawings I had been working on. She looked interestedly, touching the pages with the tips of her sharp fingers. She spoke as she looked.

 _“The Tallest require a meeting with you.”_ She said, looking at my sketches but speaking to Zim.  
 _“Why?”_ He asked suspiciously.  
 _“We do not know for sure, but we suspect that Pazak is whispering dangerous words into their ears. You need to go put them at ease. I will stay here and guard your Dib.”_ Zim sighed angrily, and walked over to his computers. He shut them down and looked over at me.  
“Stay here with Hak.” He ordered. He walked closer to me, and leaned down close to my face. “Do NOT leave this room DIB.” He said quietly. I nodded, feeling a little anxious. I didn’t want him leaving. He looked at Hak and nodded to her. She bent her head down in a small bow and said in her quiet voice;  
 _“I will watch him Lord Zim. He will be fine.”_ He looked at her, his eyes narrowed.  
 _“I know he will be fine Hak. I will be back soon.”_ He turned and left, shutting the door firmly behind him.


	10. Chapter Ten

Chapter 10

His footsteps echoed as he walked down the hall, his face set in blank determination. He had a feeling that he knew what this was about, and he wasn’t going to let Pazak mess up his plans, no matter what it took. He came to the door sooner than he expected, before he was ready. He cleared his mind and stood in front of it for a second, taking a deep breath. When he had control of his face, he knocked. The door was opened by an Irken soldier who bowed to him as he walked into the room. He stopped at the steps to the platform. He didn’t think they would be happy with him if he walked up and stood next to them, rubbing his height in their faces.

He stood at attention, with his hands clasped behind his back and waited for them to acknowledge him. They were standing on the platform at a large table, snacking on different types of doughnuts and sandwiches and candies. When they didn’t appear to see him, he sighed and said;  
 _“My Tallest.”_ They looked down at him and narrowed their eyes.  
 _“So it is true, you have grown taller. Seeing you through the meeting screens did not show your full height, but now I see that the rumors are true. I was beginning to think that you were avoiding us because you had lied about your height.”_ Red said.  
 _“Yes, we have not seen you in so long Zim, last you stood before us you were just a tiny thing.”_ Purple added.  
 _“My apologies, my Tallest. I have had many things to attend to since I have been home, I have not had much spare time in which to reward myself by meeting with you in person.”_ Zim said, trying to put himself a little more in their favor.  
 _“But you have had time to take your zakri for a walk in the gardens.”_ Red said, staring him down. Zim could think of nothing to say, so he said nothing.  
 _“Is that pitiful creature more important to you than your leaders?”_ Red asked, sneakily. Zim could not understand what he had done to cause his Tallest to be so dismayed with him.  
 _“Of course not my Tallest. I merely thought that it would have been rude to call upon you so late and figured that I would wait until a more appropriate hour. I would hate to interrupt your… rest.”_ He spoke smartly, trying not to smile. Red smirked, but Purple spoke.  
 _“But you neglected to call on us today as well, we had to send someone for you.”_ He said.  
 _“I confess my Tallest, that I may have been a little fearful of meeting with you in person.”_ He said dodgingly, thinking fast.

 _“And why is that?”_ Purple asked, cocking his head to the side as Red munched on another sandwich.  
 _“Because I must be honest and tell you of the disrespectful tone that another great Invader has used against Zim and things that are mine.”_ He said, amazed at his own genius.  
 _“Explain.”_ Red said, his mouth full of sandwich.  
 _“I encountered Invader Pazak last night in the gardens. In one sentence he undermined your authority and threatened the life of my zakri. In Irken Invader handbook, number four hundred and ninety two, that is illegal and grounds for termination and or dismemberment of the pak.”_ He said formerly.  
 _“But Invader Pazak is also an advisor, as are you. The rules are different for advisors. We will speak with Pazak of this transgression, but he has also brought up the issue of your relationship with your zakri, Zim. This is an important matter to be discussed.”_ Red said seriously. Zim remembered the night before, with Dib in the gardens. He remembered how Dib had kissed him… Pazak must have informed them. Zim’s insides churned in anger. How dare Pazak tell the Tallests of his private… stuff with the Dib. He fought to control his face.

 _“Having sexual relations with someone who is not an Invader is not acceptable Zim. You know this. We do not interbreed.”_ Purple said. Angry, Zim nodded silently.  
 _“We expect to not hear of this again.”_ Red concluded. Zim nodded again, looking at the floor to hide his uncontrollably defiant expression.  
 _“Good. That is all. You are dismissed Invader.”_ Red said, turning away from him in finality. Zim bowed and turned. The Irken soldier bowed to him and opened the door, Zim walked through it as quickly as he could without running.

 

* * *

 

 

I sat with Hak on the floor in my room, showing her all of my drawings of Zim. She was just as fascinated by them as he was, I was beginning to think it was just an Irken thing. We were talking about how I used the pencils to sketch some of the darker parts of him when we heard the door open. I stopped in mid-sentence and rose to me feet, running out the door. I ran through the bedroom and into the meeting room to see Zim standing in front of his computer, turning it on. He wasn’t looking at me.

“Zim, how did it go?” I asked. I could tell by his posture that something was wrong. Hak came in behind me, watching Zim. She walked up to him and looked up at him seriously.  
“What can we do?” She asked. He looked at her, and for the first few seconds I know he really didn’t see her. Then his eyes focused and he looked at her, his eyes narrowing in determination.  
 _“Zim needs Hak and Jeza to look in the archives and through our history of Tallests. Get Zim all of the information you can on them, and zakris. When you have it, bring it to Zim. Pazak has no IDEA who he is dealing with.”_ He said evilly. It almost made me smile to see that old spark in his eyes. This was the Zim that I knew, the Zim who fought and won.

Hak nodded and left, closing the door behind her. Zim bent down over his computer again, clicking different screens.  
“Zim what happened?” I asked, wanting to know what the hell was going on. He didn’t answer me, just kept clicking and typing. Frustrated, I walked over to him and grabbed his shoulder, pulling him up to me.  
“Zim, what the hell is going on?” I asked him again, he narrowed his eyes at me and grabbed my chin in a grip too strong for his thin, fragile looking hands.  
“Do not interrupt Zim when he is working DIB. You know better than that.” He spoke, close to my face. I jerked out of his grip.  
“I’m not your pet or your bitch Zim. When I ask you a question I expect an answer.” I said testily. We stood, nose to nose, staring each other down.  
“Zim is not ordered by you DIB. Zim answers to NO ONE. Do you understand?” He said, angry. I felt my own temper rising.  
“You know better than that Zim. We have always been equals, you and I. Us being here on this planet does not change that fact.” I thought for a moment, thinking of his being Irken, and added; “You are not Taller than me Zim. We are equal in height also.”  
“Your height does not matter DIB, you are not Irken, so it means nothing. You’re just a DISGUSTING HUMAN. You have no status here, except as my SLAVE. It has always been your destiny. Go ahead and accept it now and you will be a lot happier.” He said superiorly, smiling his evil smile.

I knew he was baiting me, channeling his anger, and it was working. I shoved his chest and he stumbled back, catching himself on his desk. He snarled at me, in that metallic Irken voice. He shoved me back, but I was expecting it and didn’t budge. It helped that I was heavier than him. Instead of pushing him again, I leaned into him, grabbing him sharply by the waist, and kissed him hard.

He was surprised for a moment, stunned, before he grabbed my shirt with his hands and threw me back into the table. The edge of it hit my lower back hard enough to bruise. I winced, but then he was on me, kissing me and pushing me back into the table. He wrapped his sharp fingers in my hair, pulling me closer to him. I put one hand on the back of his neck and the other around his waist, bringing him almost on top of me. I couldn’t _touch_ enough of him. His clothes were getting in the way, and I was getting way too hot. He opened his mouth and I felt his jointed tongue sneak into mine. His tongue was hot and the texture was strange, but when he wrapped it around my own tongue I had a sharp mental image of his tongue wrapping around me like that in… lower areas. The temperature of my skin went up again and I could feel myself getting so hard that it was painful. I put my hands on his lower back and pulled him closer to me, grinding our hips together and kissed him harder. I felt his sharp intake of breath when I pushed into him and he bit my bottom lip with his strange teeth. It wouldn’t bleed, but it would damn sure be swollen.

I felt like I was drunk. All I could see was him, all I could hear was his panting, all I could feel was his skin on mine. I was eager, pulling him closer and closer and kissing him harder and harder. We had never been this far before, and without thinking, I slid my hand up the back of his shirt, feeling his smooth skin. When my hand made contact with his skin he stopped and pulled away so fast that it made my head spin. I stumbled a little, catching myself on the table behind me. I looked at him, confused. He was standing a few feet away, clutching at his chest and breathing heavily.  
“Stupid Dib-human, ruled by your damn hormones. Zim cannot afford distractions! This is a dangerous time for us both. You must have patience. I have work to do. I do not have time for sex.” He huffed, apparently annoyed. I gaped at him, almost unable to believe he was actually saying these things.  
“Are you serious Zim? What the fuck? Fine, if that’s true, then look me in the eye and tell me you don’t want it too.” I challenged, still clutching the table. I was hot and irritable, and my erection was _outright refusing_ to go away. I couldn’t think clearly.  
“Of course Zim wants to.” He said dismissively. “But there are more important things to do now. Zim must finish his work, mustn’t let Pazak get what he wants, because then I will not get what I want, and what I want is more important than anything.” He rationalized, still breathing heavily. I stared at him, trying to make sense of what he had said.  
“Well what the hell am I supposed to do about this?” I demanded, motioning to my very stubborn erection. Zim looked down at me nearly bulging out of my pants in a way that almost made me self-conscious. He seemed very interested, and almost tempted, before he looked back at my face and said;  
“Eh. Go take care of it. Zim must work.” He said casually, as though the trash needed to be taken out or the dog needed to be walked or something stupid like that. He turned around, facing his computer once again and I seriously thought of choking him. Instead, I huffed loudly and said;  
“I’m going to take a shower. Then I’m going to bed. Have fun _working_.” I bitched. I was pissed. I stalked out of the room and into the bedroom, slamming the door behind me.

 

* * *

 

 

He sat down with his food at a table in the middle of the food court, so that the noise would mask the sound of their voices. She wasn’t there yet, but she would be any second. He started eating, he was starving. He didn’t have to wait long before she walked up and sat down across from him casually, as if their meeting each other was a frequent thing.  
 _“Well how did they take it?”_ She asked, not looking at him but resting her green chin on her hands, with her elbows on the table.  
 _“As I expected. They have probably already spoken to him about it. I’m sure he is not happy with me.”_ He said, smiling down at his food.  
 _“Good. The thought of him having…”_ She shuddered, then continued; _“That kind of relationship with that filthy creature is disgusting. We need to separate him from it.”_ Her antenna twitched in annoyance.  
 _“Once I am Tallest, I will have it destroyed. As long as you help me get there, I will let Zim live and you may have him. I will have no need for him.”_ He replied smugly, taking pleasure in her revulsion.  
 _“But he does not does not want me. He completely blew me off at his coming home party. He made a complete fool out of me.”_ She said, her face scrunched up in displeasure.  
 _“Then return the favor. Use your imagination, I’m sure you’ll think of something. I’ve heard that you are particularly talented in that area.”_ He said, glancing at her. She looked at his face, trying to decide whether to be insulted or flattered.  
 _“Fine. I will help you. What do you want me to do?”_ She said, reaching over and grabbing one of his fries. He watched her eat it and smiled at her.  
 _“I have just the thing for you. You’ll love it.”_


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At the in-laws again (Happy Father's Day!) sneaking in an upload real quick. My husband and I are starting the long, arduous process of buying our first home. It'll take a while yet, but as soon as we are moved in and settled I'll have internet again. Oh, oh the joy! Wish us luck, and as ever, happy reading! 
> 
> The chapters in this story as much shorter than all my others, because I wrote it so long ago, so I'm uploading two again.

Chapter 11

I woke up, feeling groggy again. My days and nights were all messed up because of this weird planet. They didn’t keep up with time here, so I had no idea how long I had been sleeping. Guess it didn’t matter anyway. I sat up in the bed, rubbing my eyes and trying to blink them open. I realized my glasses were gone, which was weird because I didn’t remember taking them off last night. I looked around, my vision blurry.

I caught sight of him, sitting there at the end of the bed, though all I could see of him was a green, red, and black blur. He was still, and I couldn’t tell if he was watching me.  
“Have you seen my glasses?” I asked dully, my voice rough with sleep. I was still a little peeved at him for last night, but it’s hard to radiate anger and toughness when you can’t see. He was still for a moment before I saw him move, I guessed that it was his arm, moving closer to me. I realized he was holding my glasses out to me. I held my hand up with my palm outstretched. I saw the blur of them and felt them drop into my palm, the sting came half a second after. I yanked my hand back to me.  
“Ouch! What the hell Zim?” I complained, shoving my glasses up my nose and looking at my hand. There was a drop of blood pooling in my palm. I brought it to my mouth and licked the blood off, looking grouchily at him. “Why did you prick me?” I asked.  
“Zim needed the Dibs blood. For tests and stuff. None of your concern. Go to the food court and put food things in your belly, Zim has work to do.” He said, standing.  
“What’s up with all of this ‘work’ you’re having to do? I mean come on, I know you work and crap, but it’s never been this much. What the hell is going on? And don’t feed me any bullshit.” I said, pulling myself up and leaning against the headboard.  
“It does not concern you DIB. Zim is doing important THINGS that are… important. Now obey Zim! Go eat. You are becoming thin, that is not healthy for a human.” He said, waving his hand at me as he walked away, dismissing me. He left the room and shut the door behind him. I grumbled to myself, annoyed as I got up and walked into my room, grabbing some clothes. I pulled them on, not really bothering to pay attention to what I was wearing as long as it was black. That wasn’t too hard, ninety nine percent of my wardrobe was black. When I was dressed, I left my room and walked out and into the bedroom, then into the meeting room. He was sitting at his computer again, and didn’t bother looking up at me as I walked past him. I hesitated at the door, waiting for him to say something. When he didn’t, I looked back at him. He was staring at his screens. He didn’t even know I was there. I left, slamming the door behind me.

 

* * *

 

 

_It was another typical high school day, we were sitting in our third class, waiting for the bell to ring. Everyone had finished the work our teacher had assigned us, and they were talking amongst themselves. I sat in the back, in the corner, the same place I sat in every class. Zim was beside me, the same place he sat in every class. He and I weren’t talking. He had his elbow resting on his desk, with his chin in his hand, staring at the clock dully. I was taking advantage of his not paying attention, and staring at him. How no one noticed that he was an alien was beyond me. I guess my race really was just… stupid._

_It surprised me when a girl came and sat in the desk in front of me, no one ever sat there. She turned halfway in her seat and faced me. I looked at her, dumbfounded. I could see Zim turn his head to look at us in my peripheral vision. She had dark hair and wore dark clothes, like me. She was pretty, in an odd sort of way. Not your average kind of pretty, but a darker sort of pretty. I had never seen her before , and I had no idea what her name was._

_“Hey Dib… So… I was wondering if maybe you wanted to hang out after school?” She asked, her voice quiet so that it didn’t carry too far. No one else would have heard it, but I know Zim did. I continued to stare at her stupidly for a moment, as she waited patiently for me to say something._   
_“Uh… I uh… can’t. I’m sorry.” I said. My mind was blank, I couldn’t think of anything else to say. She smiled, a little sadly but also embarrassed. I saw her cheeks turn pink as she said;_   
_“Okay. That’s cool. Just figured I would ask.” She said in her quiet voice, before getting up and walking away. Still stunned, I looked over at Zim, who was watching me. He didn’t say anything but he had an odd look on his face that I couldn’t read. I continued to watch him for the remainder of the class, and I saw him glance over at the girl quite often. She never spoke to me again._

 

* * *

 

 

I got lost a few times trying to find the food court. This place was like a fucking maze. I grew more and more aggravated as I tried to find my way around the hallways, they all looked the same. By the time I found the food court, I had realized how hungry I was. I got my food and sat down at a random table by myself. There were many Irkens here that I didn’t know, and they stared at me rudely but I ignored them.

I calmed down while I ate, I began to not feel not so aggravated and started to wish that Zim had come with me. I hated seeing some weird Irken staring at me in every direction that I looked. I thought about him and once again wondered what kind of crap he was up to. He was always up to something.

I sighed, thinking of the night before and how he had kissed me. I thought of how it felt when his tongue wrapped around mine. I felt myself growing hard and groaned, trying to inconspicuously resituate myself. Our relationship had progressed so fast over these last few days. We were so much more sexual now, than we had been before. I wondered why he never tried to initiate anything like this earlier, when we were on earth and there were no annoying interruptions. Then, when I really thought about it, I was the one who had initiated them in the first place, not Zim. What if he didn’t really want to, and he was just playing along to make me feel better? I stopped eating for a minute, and started growing anxious. What if Zim had no interest in sex at all? Did Irkens even have sex? They had to right? I mean, come on, they had to reproduce too… didn’t they? I knew that they cloned each other… but they still had sex right? I had never even bothered to ask, I just assumed… I suddenly wasn’t hungry anymore. If he really wasn’t interested in sex at all, could I handle that? I mean, realistically, I was a teenage boy. I had needs. No sex would mean a LOT of cold showers. Or masturbation. Which I wasn’t completely against but… ugh. I ran my hand over my face, feeling unsure. I took a deep breath, and looked down at my food. It wasn’t appealing anymore.

I decided to wait and see if Zim tried to initiate anything even remotely sexual. If he didn’t… then I wouldn’t either. I didn’t want to push him into doing something that he didn’t want to do, just for my own pleasure. That just didn’t sit well with me. So I would wait, and see how he acted. Until then, I didn’t want to fight with him. I would act as though nothing was wrong. Satisfied with my newest plan of action, I got up and dumped the rest of my food into a trashcan, and started making my way back to our rooms.

 

* * *

 

 

He held up the small dropper full of the Dib’s blood, and carefully let one drop fall onto the small glass slide. He set it in its tray, and pressed the button for the computer to take it in and analyze it. All his work over the past few months would come down to this. This was the moment where he would find out whether his plan would succeed or fail. He leaned back in his chair, and let his head fall back. He didn’t know how Dib would react to his plan, so he hadn’t told him. It wasn’t like he had a choice anyway. His computer would take a while to decode the humans DNA, so he had a few hours to kill.

He glanced at the door to the bedroom, knowing that Dib was out at the food court. He had been gone a while. He thought of going to find him, before he remembered something else that he had been meaning to take care of. He tapped one of his screens, pressing a few buttons here and there then leaned back again, staring up at his large screen on the wall. After a few minutes, Jeza appeared on the screen.

 _“Hello Zim, Invader of my Heart. You called?”_ She said, bowing her head to him.  
 _"Yes. What have you found concerning the Tallest and zakri?”_ He asked, looking up from his chair at the screen. Hak appeared beside Jeza, as though she had just walked into the view of the camera.

 _“Never in the history of the Tallest has there been one with a zakri.”_ Hak said. Zim sighed, frustrated. Before he could speak, Jeza continued.

 _“Invader Code says that Invaders are only allowed sexual partners who are also Invaders.”_  
 _“But, nowhere in Invader Code, does it say that only Irkens are allowed to be Invaders. It says that only those who pass the tests are allowed to be Invaders, but it says nothing about race.”_ Hak added confidently. Zim stared at them as he spoke thoughtfully.  
 _“This complicates things, but I believe my plan will still work… does anyone know that you hacked the archives?”_ He asked.  
 _“None.”_ Hak replied, somewhat smug. Jeza smiled.  
 _“Good. Let’s keep it that way.”_ Zim said, almost as though he was talking to himself.  
 _“We also have reports of Pazak and Zeema meeting in private.”_ Jeza said. Zim looked up at her.  
 _“That is unexpected. When?”_ He asked, his eyes narrowed.  
 _“Last night.”_ Hak said. Zim sat back, staring at them, thinking. He would have to watch out for whatever they were planning but there was nothing he could do about it right now. He nodded to them.  
 _“Thank you Invader Jeza, Invader Hak, that is all.”_ The bowed their heads to him and spoke simultaneously;  
 _“Lord Zim.”_

The screen went blank, leaving Zim to his thoughts. He ran the tip of his long thin finger over his mouth, thinking of Pazak and Zeema, and what they were planning. After a while, his mind wandered to Dib. He looked at the door, as though waiting for his zakri to walk through. He realized that the Dib had been gone for quite a long time. A little anxious, he pulled his tracker from his pocket. He kept this little device on him at all times. He pressed the ‘power’ button and waited a few seconds for it to load. When the screen came up, he saw that familiar little blue dot, wandering the halls of the estate. He chuckled, realizing that his zakri must be lost. Pleased to see that Dib was indeed perfectly fine, he pressed the ‘power’ button again, turning the device off. He reclined in his chair, looking at his screens again, and waited.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

By the time I finally got back to the room I was aggravated all over again. I decided that I wouldn’t be leaving the rooms again without Zim or at least a map. I tried to calm down as I shut the door behind me. It was fairly easy, the lights were shut off when I walked into the room, so I was immediately suspicious. I leaned against the door, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the darkness. I could see his screens lit up, but he wasn’t sitting in front of them. I didn’t see him in the meeting room anywhere. I glanced to the bedroom door, it was open.

I walked over to his desk and looked at his screens, it was rare that they were on when he wasn’t near them. I glanced at his main screen, the one in the middle. It had two white Irken words in the middle of it, over a status bar. The words said; “TRANSFUSION COMPLETE”. He must finally be done with whatever project he had been working on. I sighed to myself, relieved and thinking that maybe he would spend a little more time paying attention to me now. Or at least not downright ignoring me.

I left the computers and walked to the bedroom door. It was slightly ajar, the room beyond was even darker than the meeting room. I hesitated in the doorway, slowly pushing the door more open with my fingertips. I could only barely see into the room, and I didn’t see Zim. Frowning, I walked into the bedroom and to the door that led into my room. I stopped in the open door way, the lights were off in this room too. I saw him, barely, standing in the middle of my room, surrounded by junk filled boxes and desks and files and folders. He was facing away from me, looking down and standing still. I knew that he already knew I was there, so I stood still and waited for him to speak. When he didn’t, I walked up behind him and put my hand gently on his shoulder.

He turned and looked at me, his red eyes narrowed and calculating.  
“Took you long enough Dib-worm. Zim was beginning to wonder if you were going to come back at all.” He said meanly.  
“This place is a damn maze. I got lost a few times.” I said, scowling at him. He tilted his head to one side, studying me. I stood in front of him, confused and a little suspicious. I was about to ask him why he was standing in here in the dark, but his hand moved up to my face and I stayed silent. He reached up slowly and took hold of my glasses, with his fore finger and thumb, as though he was picking up something icky. I frowned as he pulled them off of my face.  
“Zim come on now. You know I can’t s-“ I started, but he cut me off.  
“Quiet Dib-stink. Zim wants to see his marks clearly. These filthy human contraptions are in Zim’s way.” He pulled them off of my face slowly and my vision blurred, but I could still somewhat see him, he was so close. He set them down on the desk beside us, then reached back up and touched my face softly, over my tattoos. I stayed still, wondering what had gotten into him. Zim rarely initiated physical contact, so I made sure to take advantage of the few opportunities that I had to be touched by him. His eyes were narrowed suspiciously, as though he thought that I might reach out and bite one of his fingers off or something.

As he traced the tattoo softly, he spoke.  
“They have healed nicely. Now all Irkens will know that you belong to ZIM.” He said, smiling evilly. I was about to smart off to him, but he leaned his face in close and I stopped, my mouth open slightly as though if I made any sudden movements he might bolt. He was an inch away when his tongue snaked out and ran across my bottom lip. His antennae were laid back, nearly flat against his head. I had become familiar with the way they moved in relation to his mood, it meant that he was uncomfortable or nervous. I tried not to smile, my stomach was flipping and I moved in and kissed him softly. I was nervous too, and excited but trying so hard not to get my hopes up.

He kissed me back, slow at first, then with a little more need. I heard a soft clunk, as though something had dropped onto the desk but I paid it no attention. My mind was preoccupied. His hands came up to my hips. He had never touched me there before. I brought my hands up to his waist tentatively, unsure if I was allowed to touch him and not wanting a repeat of last time. His hands slid up slowing, under my shirt and touching my stomach. I gasped, unable to hold it in. I was a little embarrassed at first, to have reacted like that by him merely touching my stomach, but when I felt his clawed fingers dig into my skin softly just above my hip bones, all embarrassment vanished and that hot need started to take over me once again. I dug my fingers into his sides and pulled him close to me, reaching one hand up to the back of his neck so that I could bring his mouth closer. I wanted that mouth.

We kissed hard and eager, our tongues wrapping around each other and fighting for dominance. I loved the alien feel of his strange jointed appendage. He wrapped it around my own again and pulled me into his mouth and I felt his teeth bite down on my tongue gently I almost cried out. My knees began to shake but I refused to fall. I decided to push my luck and I pulled him close to me, turning us both so that my back was against my desk, it gave me the support that I needed. He didn’t pull away, instead he pushed into me harder, grinding his hips against mine. I felt my cock trapped between us, the pressure was killing me. When he ground his hips into me again, I had to break from the kiss for a sharp intake of breath. I was panting and he was panting as he looked at me. He took one of his hands out from under my shirt and moved it down between us, reaching for my erection. The other of his hands moved farther up under my shirt and to my chest, scratching me, then up to my collar bone and around to the back of my neck. His other hand found my hard on and wrapped around me through my pants and squeezed gently. I moaned this time, unable to control it. He looked at my face and smiled, excited by the reaction. I snuck my fingers under his shirt and dug them into the smooth skin of his back as he pulled my neck closer. He put that oh so talented mouth on my neck as he started pumping me with his other hand and it felt so good that my legs almost gave out. Determined to _not_ fall like a bitch, I pulled my neck away from his mouth and grabbed him by his waist, throwing him roughly over my shoulder.

“DIB! PUT ZIM DOWN NOW!” He screeched as I walked out of my room and into the bedroom. I did as he asked and dropped him onto the bed. He looked up at me angrily and started to speak, but I quickly removed my shirt and he stopped, his mouth hanging open. Before he had a chance to finish, I was on him again, kissing him and running my hands back under his shirt and up his chest. He was _not_ getting away from me this time.

I felt hot, I felt like I was burning and his clothes were driving me crazy. Without asking him, I leaned back up and grabbed the hem of his shirt. I pulled it up and over his head, throwing it across the room. He was thinner than me, his skin was smoother, softer. I looked down at him, enjoying the sight.  
“Zim did not give you permission to remove his clothes DIB.” He said, as though he was complaining.  
“To be honest Zim, I don’t really give a damn.” I said, smiling at him. He looked for a moment as though he might start bitching, but I started kissing him again to shut him up. I couldn’t stop touching him, all over, every part of his skin that I could reach. Part of it was that same scientific obsession that had always lingered, the need to study his foreign body, to explore it. But mostly it was me feeling horny as fuck.

His hands reached up, under my arms and on my back. His sharp fingers dug into my shoulder blades and I had to take a deep breath again to keep from losing what little control I had. It occurred to me, for about half a second as I was tugging at the waistband of his Invader pants, that we might not be… physically compatible for this. But that thought went out the window when his hand reached down and wrapped around me again.

He started moving, up and down the length of me, making it hard for me to think. I yanked harder at his pants, not bothering to figure out how to take them off properly. I just pulled them down, until they were past his hips. I would have ripped the damn things off, I didn’t care. I didn’t look at him, I kept my eyes on his face, his neck, his chest, as I finished pulling his pants off of him. When he was completely naked before me, I looked. I breathed out a sigh of relief as I saw him. He was lying on his back before me, his legs spread. I was bent slightly, hanging over him with his knees on either side of my hips. I could see all of him, and he was fucking _perfect._ He was shaped slightly different than me, but he was straight and hard and beautiful. I could see his small puckered hole, underneath his sack and the sight of it threatened to drive me crazy. The tip of him brushed against my pants and his hand where he was holding me through the cloth. Yeah. The pants had to go.

I stood quickly, wincing when I lost contact with that wonderful hand. I undid my pants in record time, pushing them and my boxers down my legs in one swift movement. For about half a second, I looked at him, marveling that this was really happening. Then I looked at his face and he was looking at me. There was a look on his face that I had never seen before. He was propped up on the bed, on one of his elbows with the other hand held out to me, wiggling his long fingers, saying clearly; “gimmie.”. His antennae were nearly flat against his skull and his eyes were narrowed.

I leaned back down, picking him up by his waist and moving him farther up onto the bed to give me more room. I crawled down and on top of him. He wrapped his legs around my waist and his skin felt cool to me. Or maybe mine was just so hot. He wrapped a hand around the back of my neck again and pulled me down close to him, and his tongue found my ear at the same time that his hand found my cock. I moaned and thrust into his hand wildly. I held myself up with one arm and reached down between us with my other. I found him, hard and ready.

His skin was so smooth, and this part of him was _very_ warm. I began to pump him in the same rhythm that he pumped me, and earned the first sound from him. My heart beat sped up when he let out that soft moan, and I kissed him again. His antennae came up, pointing forwards and brushing against my forehead. I had a sudden idea, and broke the kiss while still continuing to move my hand up and down his erection. I leaned up and took the tip of one of his antennae into my mouth sucking on it gently. He cried out, and pushed into my hand hard. I smiled around the small black appendage, and continued to suck. I wrapped my tongue around it and his hand that wasn’t wrapped around me dug into my upper back.

Going crazy, I let go of his antennae and leaned up, taking my hand that I had been using to hold myself up and put two fingers in my mouth. I continued to move my hand up and down his length as I sucked on my own fingers, staring down at him. He was panting, I watched his chest heave. I hadn’t thought I could get any harder. I was wrong.

I wanted so bad to be inside him, I sucked hard on my fingers, taking them out of my mouth too quickly, the trail of saliva led from my lip to my fingers for only a second as I reached down under his dick and pressed one finger inside him. He adjusted quickly, pressing down onto my finger, eager for more. I smiled, satisfied and pressed the second one into him. He adjusted around me again, the ring of muscles tightening around my fingers then relaxing again, repeating the motions. Tighten, relax, tighten, relax. The thought of _that_ happening around my cock almost made me cry. I used the remainder of my saliva to moisten the head of my cock, then adjusted myself in front of him. I looked at his face.

He was looking up at me, panting. We stared at each other for a moment before I pushed into him fast. We both cried out, yelling. I was still in him for a moment, while we both tried to catch our breath. I felt him tighten around me, then relax, then tighten again. Over and over. I knew that I could have cum, just like this. But I pulled out and pushed into him again. He let out a whine, a high pitched noise that made me want to hold him close and kiss his face. I leaned down and pressed my cheek to his as I pushed into him again, over and over again. We set into a rhythm, in perfect sync. His muscles continued to tighten around me and I continued to thrust into him, hard and steady while he cried out over and over. I moaned with him, and it got the point where I couldn’t tell the difference between our voices. He was so warm and so tight, it took all I had not to finish inside him, but I held it and kept going. I reached between us and wrapped my hand around him, pumping him to the same rhythm that I was using to thrust into him.

I felt him spasm around me then, and he dug his sharp fingers even more deeply into my skin. I bit my own lip, trying to focus more on the pain and less on the pleasure, so that I wouldn’t finish too quickly. The urge was becoming unbearable. I pressed my cheek harder against his, almost as if I was trying to steady myself, his breath was coming in sharp, hot bursts into my ear. I tried to concentrate, my hand moving quickly in time with my thrusts, I could feel him getting close to the edge and I moved my face down, into his neck, kissing and biting. I was so close now, I bit down on my lip again just as he cried out sharply into my ear. His hands clenched down, his fingers digging so sharply into my skin that I knew I would be bleeding. His voice was high, and it seemed to me like that sound dug into my brain, sending me over the edge. I came in a quick burst, slamming into him as hard as I could and stopping. I cried out, trying to catch my breath and continued riding my orgasm at the same time. His body clenched around me, so tight that I almost felt as though I would come all over again. I whimpered softly as he continued to tighten around me, his panting still warm and wet in my ear. We stilled, all except for our rapid breathing and his tightening muscles. My body was still riding it, but the intense feeling was getting dimmer, less intoxicating. I pulled up and looked at his face. He was relaxed, more so than I could ever remember him being. His shoulders were loose and his eyes were narrowed but in a softer way, as though he was sleepy or drunk. I could see a pale, green substance spattered on his stomach. His hands had relaxed, and they slid down, off of my back and falling limply onto the bed. I smiled at him, feeling so happy at that moment that I could have been high.

I moved to pull out of him and frowned. I was… stuck. His body had clamped down around me, and I couldn’t move at all. I looked at him as he smiled up at me, his smile seeming somewhat cruel.  
“What’s wrong Dib?” He chuckled. I frowned more deeply, quite confused. My buzz was leaving faster than I wanted it to.  
“What the hell Zim? Why can’t I-“ I started, before he interrupted me.  
“You can’t pull out quite yet DIB. We’re not done.” He sneered. I opened my mouth to speak, wondering what the hell he was talking about and beginning to get paranoid that he was going to hurt me. Before I could speak, I heard that familiar ‘click’ of his pak opening and saw one of his mechanical arms come out, moving up and far over my head. It reached behind me, far behind me and into my bedroom. It came out fast, holding something that I couldn’t make out. I looked back at Zim to see him smiling that smile that always meant something was about to happen and I wasn’t going to enjoy it. I almost cringed as his mechanical arm brought the small… thing to Zim’s hands then disappeared back into his pak. It was… a pak. I think? It was shaped the same as Zim’s but its color was slightly different, darker. He reached one hand around my waist and to my lower back, touching me softly.  
 _“Hello Dib, Invader of my heart…”_ He whispered in my ear, before I felt the worst pain I’ve ever felt rip into my back. I screamed, and everything went black.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Ah, I have internet once again! Instead of trying to go back to uploading a chapter two days a week, I'll just continue to upload two chapters one day every weekend, probably Saturdays. So here are your two chapters, enjoy! <3

Chapter 13

I felt… strange. I wasn’t really conscious. I was… floating, kind of. I felt so light, weightless, but so heavy at the same time. It was the weirdest thing. I couldn’t feel anything touching me, as if I was just hovering in midair, in the dark. Then at the same time I could vaguely feel the bed underneath me, the sheet covering me. There was something digging into my back uncomfortably, but I wasn’t aware enough to actually do anything about it.

I don’t know how long I was laying there, most of the time I was just sleeping, not aware of anything. Sometimes, I would be surrounded by black, I would hear things, weird sounds, but then they would be lost again as I went back under. I came almost awake at one point, my stomach was churning in that hot way it does when I’m angry. I could hear someone’s voice, someone that I knew I didn’t like but for some reason I couldn’t pinpoint who it was. She was talking to him… telling him that he needed to go somewhere. Something about a meeting with the Tallests? I couldn’t even remember who that was. I could hear _his_ voice, answering her, before I heard a clicking sound then everything went black and quiet again.

When I finally came awake, really awake, I felt weird. I felt much heavier. I tried to open my eyes but I couldn’t figure out how, so I just laid there. I felt something on my body twitch, and figured out that it was my fingers, so I focused on that and tried to make them twitch again. I felt drunk, dizzy even though I wasn’t moving. I moved my hand, I lifted it up and brought it to where I felt like my face should be. I touched something, and pushed at it a little, it hurt. I was my eye. I rubbed the pain out of it, and finally opened my eyes. I was dim in the room, but not dark. I didn’t move, but I looked around at what I could see from this position. As I took in my surroundings, I began to remember where I was and who I was and what had happened. I remembered Zim, and him destroying my planet and bringing me here. I remembered Jeza and Hak and Pazak and Zeema. When I thought of Zeema, I remembered hearing her voice while I was sleeping. She had come for Zim, she had come and taken him to the Tallests.

I twitched again, sitting up quickly as I remembered, and felt a wave of dizziness wash over me. I groaned, dropping my head into my hands. My head hurt and I felt like I had been beaten. My shoulder twitched violently. I mentally shook myself, I had to get up, I had to find Zim. I swung my legs off of the bed, putting my feet on the floor. I looked down at them, then I looked at my hands. They were normal, but I couldn’t stop twitching in odd places, my neck was the worst. I rubbed my neck, then stood. I was naked, so I walked slowly into my bedroom. I felt like I had that sickness that you get after you’ve been on a boat for a long time, and you come back to land and you still feel like you’re on the water, rocking back and forth. I swayed, catching myself on the doorframe. I looked around and saw some of my clothes scattered on the floor and reached down, picking them up. I pulled on my pants and boxers, then tried to pull a shirt over my head. That’s when I felt it.

It was small, resting between my shoulder blades, but it was smooth and hard, like porcelain. I remembered seeing the pak in Zims hands, right before I lost consciousness. I remembered his voice, whispering sweetly into my ear; _“Hello Dib, Invader of my Heart…”_

I stood, stunned, reaching behind me awkwardly and feeling my new alien appendage. It felt… sore. I could feel it, as though my nerves were connected to it, and it hurt. I touched it gingerly, wincing, as though it was a bruise. The thought of pulling a shirt on over that made me cringe, so I decided to forgo the shirt. I didn’t need it. I walked out of my bedroom, I didn’t bother with shoes either. I had almost reached the door to take me out into the hall when someone knocked. I opened it, quickly, hoping it was Zim. It wasn’t.

 _“Dib. Are you alright?”_ It was Hak, her eyes showed concern as she spoke, but I ignored her question.  
 _“Where is Zim?”_ I said, breathless for some reason.  
 _“He is with Zeema…”_ She said, her metallic voice hesitant. I narrowed my eyes, feeling paranoid and agitated. I hated the thought of him being with Zeema. That was unacceptable. Man, I felt weird.  
 _“Take me to them.”_ I commanded her. She lowered her head, still looking up at me, and spoke softly.  
 _“I don’t think that’s a good ide-“_ She started.  
 _“Now.”_ I interrupted, not backing down. She bowed to me, actually bowed to me, and said;  
 _“Yes, Invader Dib.”_ She turned, and I followed her, trying not to think of what Zim had done to me and tried to focus more on finding him so that I could make him explain. I followed her for a while, trying to control my body as I walked. I was still twitching, but not as bad. I still felt a little unsteady, but I tried to walk normally. The Irken symbols that were etched into the walls jumped out at me, clearer than they had ever been.

 

* * *

 

 

_He was doing it again, and it was driving me nuts. I didn’t know why he felt the need to constantly test me, as though he didn’t believe that I wouldn’t hurt him, wouldn’t betray him. Which I thought was stupid, I mean come on, we had been friends for years now. You think he would be confident enough to know that I wasn’t trying to poison him every time I brought him McDonalds or something._

_“So then what did you do?” He asked, he had one eye narrowed and one wide in his signature look, and he was interrogating me to the point where I was beginning to get a headache._   
_“I told you already, when I heard them talking about how to stuff you into the locker, I walked up to them and warned them not too. So one of them gets all butthurt about it and asked me something stupid, then-“_   
_“What did he ask?” He interrupted. I sighed._   
_“He asked if it would hurt my feelings when they stuffed my ‘boyfriend’ into a locker. I said that they could try it and find out. Then he got in my face and I shoved him. That’s when the fight started. I wish they would fucking leave you alone, seriously. I can’t keep getting written up for defending you. It’s annoying.” I grouched._   
_“What is a boyfriend?” He asked. This was not the direction I had expected this conversation to take. I hesitated, looking at him._   
_“It’s uh… they were implying that you and I were in a relationship.” I explained._   
_“Well then they were right. Zim and the Dib are in a relationship.” I cocked my eyebrow up at him, and asked; “And what kind of relationship is that?”_   
_“I am your master and you are my slave, of course.” He said, matter of factly. I almost choked on my orange juice. Before I could respond, he continued._   
_“And so far, you’re not doing too bad of job, Dib-slave. You took up for and defended your master, I am impressed. Now, carry my books to our next class.”_

 

* * *

 

 

We walked quickly, until we finally came to a door that had a symbol on it that I never seen before. Somehow I knew though, what it meant. Her name in Irken was a pretty thing, it did not suit her. I narrowed my eyes again, to the point where they were slits. I didn’t knock. Instead, I opened the door and walked in, without permission. Hak followed me, protesting something but I wasn’t listening. I saw them immediately, he was leaning against one of the tables in her meeting room, looking at her with a strange expression on his face. His eyes were narrowed, as though he smelled something nasty. She was leaning up and into him, close to his face, her antennae reaching up and towards his. His were leaning back, flat against his head. They both looked up when I walked in, Zim’s eyes ran over my body instantly, taking me in as though he was looking for something. Zeema’s eyes narrowed, and stepped away from Zim and towards me. As she stalked towards me, I gave her all of my attention. I knew that if I looked at Zim, I wouldn’t be able to focus.

 _“What the hell are you doing in my room you inferior scum? Get out. Now. We are busy.”_ She sneered at me. I stepped towards her, anger clouding my judgment. I leaned into her face, feeling a strange sick satisfaction of having to look down at her.  
 _“Zim belongs to ME. You have no right to touch him. Keep your filthy claws off of him.”_ I spat into her face. Her expression slipped into shock at my words, she cocked her head to the side, studying me. After only a few heartbeats, smiled at me, unpleasantly.  
 _“Too late for that.”_ She sneered. And that was it. I went crazy. I grabbed her by the throat, squeezing tightly and lifting her up off of the floor. When I had gained the strength to do that, I had no idea. I felt my back twitch violently, and I knew it was my pak. The arms came out and lifted me up high on spider legs, just before my knees buckled. I was lifted high, near the ceiling and holding Zeema close to me, squeezing her thin neck with both hands now, my face close to hers. I looked down at her, her feet dangling from the floor, and smiled almost sweetly.

I couldn’t hear Zim or Hak yelling, all I could hear was my own internal raging, _‘kill her, kill her’_. It felt _so good_ , having my fingers around her throat. Her eyes bulged at me, her mouth making a soft choking noise. Her claws scratched at my hands, and I smiled at her again. I felt the strange urge to lick her cheek, and I almost did before her own spider legs came from her pak and rammed into my shoulder. She tore into me, I could feel the muscle in my body ripping. I screamed and dropped her, holding my hand over my shoulder. She fell to the ground, breathing heavily and looked up at me, hate in her eyes.

Her legs lifted her up as well, and she slammed into me again, knocking me down, I felt one of my mechanical legs bend the wrong way, and it hurt. How I could feel that, I had no idea.  
 _“How DARE you challenge ME, an Irken Elite! You must be completely stupid.”_ She spat viciously, standing over me. I heard footsteps and she spoke again, _“Come any closer Zim darling, and I’ll kill him now.”_ I could feel one of her sharp mechanical limbs against my throat. He stopped.  
 _“He is mine Zeema. MINE. You will NOT touch him.”_ He whispered. I had never heard his voice so… deadly. She only laughed.  
 _“Does this creature really mean so much to you? I can’t believe you taught it our language… and even gave it a pak. Really Zim, what were you thinking? The Tallests will banish you for this. Or worse.”_ She said, shaking her head. He said nothing. She looked back down at me, sneering.  
 _“I can’t wait to watch the Tallests dismember you.”_ She said evilly. I lifted one of my mechanical legs up slowly, behind her to where she couldn’t see. _“You are not WORTHY of a pak. You can’t even use it properly. It’s pathetic.”_ She continued. I smiled at her, my metal arm, just behind her. Her face took on an angry expression, and she growled at me.  
 _“What’s so funny worm?”_  
 _“You shouldn’t have touched my Zim.”_ I said, quietly, I could taste the blood in my mouth. My shoulder was still bleeding. As she opened her mouth, my arm sliced into her, but not into her skin. I punctured her pak, ripping it open harshly. She screamed and instantly fell to the ground, her eyes open and her body twitching violently. Even as she fell, my arms continued to dig into her. Bits of blood and flesh and metal flew everywhere. I sat up, leaning on my elbows. She was close to me, so pieces of her flecked onto me, onto my face and clothes. Zim ran to me, pulling me away from her body, and I didn’t stop him. But I didn’t stop tearing into her either. Even after he pulled me away, I kept reaching for her. All I could think was _‘how dare she touch him, he is mine’_. Underneath all of that, the more rational part of me, the more human part, was thinking that I must have gone insane.

When the door opened and soldiers started filing in, it tore my attention away from Zeema. Two of them grabbed me roughly by each arm, then I felt them shove something onto my pak. It hurt, and somehow I knew that I wouldn’t be able to use it now. Not that I knew how to anyway, for Zeema it had just come alive on its own. They picked me up, then forced me to my knees, holding my arms at a very uncomfortable angle behind me.  
 _“What is this? You cannot take him. She provoked him, he is not at fault! He belongs to ZIM! You cannot have him!”_ I heard him screech.  
 _“I’m sorry Lord Zim, but your zakri has killed an Invader, an Elite. The Tallests will have him go on trial. He will have to be dismembered.”_ One soldier said. Zim grabbed him roughly by the collar just as Pazak walked into the room. He looked around, shaking his head with a smug expression.

 _“Well Zim, look at what your creation has done. How many laws have you broken this time?”_ He asked calmly. Zim let go of the soldier and made for him, but Hak caught him and held him back.  
 _“If you harm him, Pazak, Zim will come after you, and Zim will rip your squeedily spooch from you and make you EAT IT.”_ He growled menacingly. A flash of concern ran through Pazaks eyes before he hid it.  
 _“Now Zim, such words. The Tallests will think that you have gone mad, along with your pet. Better be careful, or you may suffer the same fate as it.”_ He smirked. Zim took a deep breath, but said nothing. His eyes were narrowed, and he looked down at me. They softened just a bit, but not by much.

 _“Do not worry Dib. They will not harm you. Zim will not allow it.”_  
 _“I really don’t think you have a choice.”_ Pazak said. “Bring him to the slave hold and lock him up until we decide on a trial date.” He said. I looked at Zim, panicking.  
 _“Zim-“_ I tried, but they slapped some contraption over my mouth so that I couldn’t speak. They picked me up by my upper arms and started dragging me out the door. I struggled but it was like all the strength had left me, I was exhausted. He tried to come after me, but Hak held him back, whispering something that I could not hear into his ear. His eyes narrowed once again, and the last look I got of him was him looking angrily at me as they drug me away.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Chapter 14

I woke up, retching violently. Guess I was lucky that I hadn’t fallen asleep on my back. I sat up, spitting and wiping my mouth with the back of my hand. I was sitting on a cold, damp floor in a dark room. I was tired and achy and I couldn’t tell if it was from all the shit that had happened or from falling asleep on a hard floor. I couldn’t tell how long I had been locked up in here, I kept falling asleep and waking back up. It could have been three hours or three days. Or longer. I had no idea, I hated that Irkens didn’t keep time.

I spat again, then scooted away from the pile of vomit. The smell was rancid, and it was only making me want to puke again. I was sitting, leaning my back against a wall. I felt so weak. Like I hadn’t eaten in days. Which I probably hadn’t. Zim had told me that he would get me out of here, but I hadn’t seen him, or anyone, since they had locked me up. I was starting to feel unwanted. Maybe his _experiment_ hadn’t turned out the way he had wanted, I thought viciously. I thumped the back of my head against the wall, letting out my hurt and frustration. I regretted it immediately, my skull pounded where I had hit it. I was starting to shiver too, it was cold in here and all I was wearing were my pants. I pulled my legs up close to my body, and wrapped my arms around them, trying to warm up. I leaned my forehead onto my knees and sighed heavily, closing my eyes.

I thought of Zim, seeing his face in my head. I could see him sitting at his computer, and pacing complaining about something while I only half listened. I could see him yelling at me, and getting beat up by school bullies. I could see him looking at me with an almost smile on his face, and leaning back naked on the bed I while I… and now I didn’t know if I would ever see him again.

I felt the sobs starting in my chest, and tried to hold them in. I was NOT about to sit here and cry. No way. Why the hell had Zim done this to me anyway? What was the point? We were alright, with me as his Zakri. I could have lived with that. Why the fuck did he feel the need to change shit just when it was starting to work. And why the hell wasn’t he in here coming to my fucking rescue? Did he just not care? Was that it? He goes and drills this shit into my back and lets it drive me crazy then doesn’t bother to clean up the mess? I wanted to kill him. I could feel that urge again, my eyes had narrowed and I wanted to wrap my fingers around his beautiful green throat.

And I wanted to kiss him.  
I wanted to pull off his Invader uniform, one piece at a time.  
I wanted to pull him close, and wrap my tongue around his antennae.  
I wanted to bury myself inside him over and over again.

And I wanted to punch him in the face. I missed him, but I was so angry with him for doing this shit to me. How much crap did he plan to put me through? He annihilated my home, my family, he drags me off to this horrible place, he ignores me and bitches at me, then just when I thought things were okay, he pulls this shit! Well fuck him. Maybe they’ll just kill me and put me out of my misery. I hope so. The sooner the better. It’s fucking cold in here.

* * *

 

 

 _“This is so STUPID! Why can’t they have his trial now? What are they waiting for?? Stupid Pazak, he’s got the Tallests in his pocket. I can’t BELIEVE they listened to HIM over ME! I AM TALLER THAN HIM!”_ Zim screamed at no one in particular. He was pacing his room, going crazy from being confined to his quarters two days ago when they had taken HIS Dib. Hak sat at the table, watching him pace and listening to him patiently.  
 _“I will KILL him for this! How DARE he try to OVERPOWER ZIM!”_ He continued. His arms were gesturing wildly. He hadn’t been able to sleep or eat for two days, until someone had finally come to tell him that the Tallests had _still_ not made a decision on the date for the Dibs trial. That had been two hours ago. Since then, he had been pacing and ranting as loud as he could, while Hak waited with him patiently. He wasn’t allowed to leave, but Hak and Jeza had been with him almost constantly. They were allowed to come and go as they pleased.

 _“Where is Jeza?”_ He asked suddenly, turning to Hak.  
 _“Doing exactly what you told her to. Calm down Zim. The Dib will be fine. She can handle this.”_ Hak said confidently. He turned away from her again, and continued his pacing.  
 _“I can’t WAIT to get my hands on Pazak. He will regret the day he messed with ZIM.”_ He seethed.

 

* * *

 

 

  
I jerked my head up when I heard the footsteps. They were faint, but they were the first that I had heard in god knows how long. I scrambled to my feet, clumsily, nearly falling over. I watched the door, hoping to see his face. It wasn’t him.

Jeza unlocked the door and opened it quickly. I watched her glance behind her before she shut it. Then she looked at me. Her eyes went wide as they took in my appearance. I guess I looked that bad.  
 _“Dib, are you well?”_ She asked me, but she already knew the answer.  
 _“Where is Zim?”_ I asked. “Why hasn’t he come for me?” She shook her head but didn’t answer.  
 _“I can’t stay long, come here, quickly.”_ I obeyed, walking to her but narrowing my eyes in suspicion. She pulled a long thin needle out of her pocket, and I stopped dead.

 _“Calm down Dib, Zim sent me with this. This will help you.”_ She said, holding her gloved hand out to me.  
 _“Funny how I DON’T BELIEVE YOU.”_ I said sarcastically. I backed up again, wincing when I stepped in my own vomit with my bare feet.  
 _“Dib look, the pak that Zim gave you was designed a certain way. It can’t do all the work to help your body adjust to it. It is using too much of your energy. You need sustenance. This will help you. If you don’t take it, the pak will kill you. We suspect that that may be one of the reasons why they keep delaying your trial, and refusing Zim’s requests to see you.”_ She explained. I cocked my head at her, still watching her and unsure if I believed her.

 _“What do you mean, I need sustenance?”_ I asked.  
 _“The pak is absorbing nutrition from your body in order to function. It is feeding itself. That is how paks work. That is why Irkens eat so much. In order to feed our paks. They are like parasites. But we need them to function as well. Your pak is taking much from you, and you are not eating. At this rate, you will die. Soon. You must let me inject this into you. It is Zim’s wish that you stay alive.”_ She said, facing me. She stood, relaxed and at ease, as if she wasn’t in a hurry and this wasn’t a desperate situation. I knew she was trying to help me calm down, and it was working. A little.

 _“Alright fine.”_ I snapped. I held out my arm, not the one attached to my injured shoulder. She looked at me before she took it, focusing her attention on my skin. She jabbed the needle in roughly, with no warning or preparation.  
 _“Hey what the hell? You’re supposed to sterilize the skin first!”_ I complained, jerking my arm back as soon as she was done.  
 _“Poor ignorant zakri. Zim has much to teach you of being an Invader. Your pak will protect you from infection. Do not worry.”_ She said, almost smiling. “Now I must go, I must report back to Zim.” She turned and opened the door.  
 _“Wait! Tell Zim for me… Tell him…”_ I couldn’t finish. She looked at me, her eyes softening a bit before she nodded her head.  
 _“I understand Invader Dib. I will let him know.”_ She said, before disappearing out the door and locking it once again.

 

* * *

 

 

  
_It was cold out, it was December. My favorite month. I loved the cold, I loved the look of lifeless trees and brown grass. Call me emo, but I loved it. It was soothing to me. I was sitting in my room, I had the window wide open so that the chilly air could seep in. I was the only one home, Gaz was out somewhere and Dad was… well, Dad was never home._

_I had my stereo that Zim had made me, sitting on my floor playing music. I was lying on the floor next to it, drawing. I drew pictures of dead trees, snowy landscapes and faceless people walking down dark streets. I was lonely._

_Zim had gone out, said that he had some THINGS to take care of and I wasn’t invited, so I was sitting home, alone. Drawing out my misery and singing softly to myself. I loved to sing, but I never did unless I was completely alone. It wasn’t that I had a bad voice, I mean, it was alright I guess. It just wasn’t something that I shared with other people. The words dripped from my practiced lips, I knew these songs by heart. I was drawing creatures coming from the dark, with large eyes and claws ripping through as if they were coming out of the paper._

_If Zim could see me now he would say that I was sulking. I sighed, trying not to care. I continued to draw, my dark images transforming into a tall figure with whom I was very familiar. I didn’t know why I always ended up drawing him, but I did. Always._

_I huffed, dropping my pencil and rolling onto my back to stare at the ceiling. I closed my eyes as the next song came on. I loved this one. I sang along to it, every word memorized. I didn’t hear him when he came to my open window sat on the window sill. I didn’t see him, my eyes were closed and I was in a whole other world. I don’t know how long he was there either. But when the song ended, he spoke, and I almost had a heart attack._

_“I didn’t know you could sing Dib-monkey. How… pleasant.” He said, motioning his hand strangely. I had sat up, and I was clutching my chest so that my heart didn’t rip out of it. I knew he had to be able to hear my heartbeat, it was so loud. I was breathing deeply, shaking my head. I couldn’t get enough air to speak. He slid down, into the room and sat on my bed, as though he owned the damn place. I scowled at him as I heaved._   
_“Why has Zim never heard this before?” He asked mildly curious._   
_“Because I don’t sing in front of people? Ever? It makes me uncomfortable.” I grouched. “Why are you here? What happened to your business?” I asked meanly. I was still mad at him for leaving me alone for the whole freaking afternoon. I mean, not like I needed him or anything. But still._

_“Zim’s BUSINESS is COMPLETED. I am done. Come to my base now.” He commanded dramatically. He was always overly dramatic._   
_“Why should I? Maybe I’m busy.” I huffed. He laughed._   
_“Don’t be silly DIB. Come now, you can SING me some of these songs that you listen to so much.” He said, nonchalantly as he climbed back up to the window._   
_“I’m not singing to you Zim. No way. Not happening.” I said, determined._   
_“Oh, I think you will. Hurry up. You humans are so slow.” He bitched, before dropping back out of the window. His confidence pissed me off._   
_“Why don’t you use the door like normal people?!” I yelled after him. I was so not singing._

 

* * *

 

 

  
Red stood in their bedroom, stuffing his face full of blueberry muffins, while Purple sighed heavily from the bed.  
 _“What’s wrong?”_ Red asked him, his voice muffled through the fluffy muffiny goodness. He frowned in concern, looking at his partner.  
 _“What are we going to do about Zim and his Zakri?”_ He asked, looking up to Red for guidance.  
 _“Well we’ll have to kill the Zakri. We can’t have a non-Irken as an Invader. It’s ridiculous.”_ He said, as though it were the most obvious solution in the world.  
 _“Yes but Red, Zim is TALLER THAN US. If we make him angry… he may change his mind and take his rightful position as Tallest… We would be demoted. I don’t want to be demoted.”_ He said sadly, as though he was losing his dog of sixteen years to cancer. Irkens, so dramatic sometimes.

 _“Well we could always kill them both.”_ Red said thoughtfully, fingering another muffin.  
 _“That leaves us with Pazak.”_ Purple said. _“We can’t kill Zim AND Pazak, we need at least one advisor.”_  
 _“Well Zim is more of a threat right now…”_ Red said. Purple sighed, looking up at him.  
 _“You’re right.”_ He frowned, then brightened and said, _“Hand me a muffin?”_


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am sorry I am so late. I have no excuses. I'm going to go ahead and post the rest of this story so that you don't have to wait any more. If you're not too angry with me, leave me a review?

Chapter 15

 

He was pacing, aggravated and mumbling to himself. He hadn’t been this frazzled in a while, this situation was seriously starting to get to him. His antennae were constantly twitching, and he kept running his gloved hand over them, smoothing them out as much as he could. He was going stir crazy. If they didn’t let him out soon he was going to disregard their orders and their authority and do whatever the hell he wanted, which in the end would only cause more problems.

          

Jeza and Hak had become, for lack of a better expression, his loyal followers. Where he couldn’t go, what he couldn’t do, they did for him. If he needed a shot snuck to Dib, they handled it. If he needed food, they handled it. If he needed to know what Pazak was up to, they handled it. Dib had been locked up for over two weeks, and Zim was becoming increasingly worried about his physical and mental health. If the Dib died, then all of his plans were pointless. He needed the Dib for… stuff. He was valuable. Irreplaceable.

          

He still hadn’t gotten a reply from the Tallest, no trial date was set, no punishment had been issued for the dismemberment of Invader Zeema, and he had heard nothing from Pazak. He knew from Jeza and Hak’s observations that he was having frequent meetings with the Tallest. The filthy suck up. He left the meeting room where Jeza was sitting silently. Hak was out doing…something. He walked into the bedroom and through into the Dib’s bedroom. Standing in the doorway, he looked around the dimly lit room. There were pictures all over the place, the room was a mess. Dib hadn’t attempted to organize at all. He was always messy like this.

          

Zim bent down, picking up a picture at random. It was Dib and his horrible human sister thing, Gaz. He was smiling, genuinely smiling. She was… not smiling. Every time Zim had seen her, she always had the same expression. He had never really liked her. But the Dib… the Dib was a different matter.

          

He dropped the picture and sank down to the floor, his gloved hands spreading out all of the pictures that surrounded him. He saw ones of himself, when the Dib-worm thought he wasn’t looking. Of course, ZIM knows ALL. Even when Dib is sneakily snapping pictures. He saw pictures of the stupid kids at school, Dib’s father, and random pictures of odd things, like spiders and drops of water on leaves. His Dib had always like taking pictures. There were more pictures of Zim than anything else, and very few of Dib himself.

          

Zim sighed, and wondered what Dib was doing and whether or not he was okay. The Dib was prone to depression, and he was afraid of what his mental state would be after being locked up for so long. He needed the Tallest to make a decision NOW. As soon as he thought of the Tallest, he heard that familiar beeping noise that signaled an incoming transmission. He jumped up, scrambling madly back into the meeting room. He stopped in the doorway, taking a breath and trying to appear calm and collected. He walked smoothly into view of his camera and DESPERATELY tried to keep his expression neutral.

_“Greetings, Invader Zim.”_

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

I was awake, but not for long probably. I was tired and hardly able to move. I still didn’t know how long I had been in here, but it felt like forever. My voice was scratchy from disuse and I felt drugged constantly. My only visitors had been Jeza and Hak, and not that they weren’t good company, but they weren’t who I was wanting to see. I wanted to see my most hated rival, my lover. My Zim. So that I could chew his green ass out.

 

I knew he was trying, Jeza and Hak had told me of the Tallests procrastinations, and Pazak’s scheming. I knew it wasn’t Zim’s fault. Well, it wasn’t ALL Zim’s fault.

 

Between feeling sorry for myself about my situation, and starving to death, I was trying to get used to the new functions of my body. My whole freaking system was different. The whole time I had been here, I hadn’t gone to the bathroom. I hadn’t needed to. When I asked Hak about it, she said that my new pak was absorbing all of my extra nutrients. Meaning… I would never have to take a piss or a crap again. WEIRD.

 

I was also now prone to lapses of paranoia. I had never been a very paranoid person, that was always Zim’s forte, but now I was starting to think that maybe it was an Irken thing. Or a pak thing. My mind would seem to make shit up, and sometimes I would actually think that Zim was scheming against me, trying to get me killed for some crazy reason. Which is completely ridiculous. Zim had many faults, but he wasn’t trying to off me, I was confident about that. Most of the time.

 

I sighed, rolling the stiffness out of my neck. All of the twitching that I had been experiencing had calmed down, except for an annoying quirk in my neck. Every now and then my neck would spasm, and my head would jerk to the side. It drove me nuts. It happened most when I was cold.  I wished that they would have at least let me have a bed. This floor wasn’t very comfortable. I had my legs stretched out, with my hands on my stomach. I also hadn’t sweated at all, which was weird but in a good way. I hated sweating. It made my hair stick to the back of my neck. That was one of the most uncomfortable feelings.  

 

I sighed, wondering was Zim was doing. Whether he was working or ranting or scheming. I smiled, seeing a mental image of him in my head. I wanted to hear his voice. I wanted to see his face.  I wanted to touch him, and see the face of displeasure that he would give at my touching him without asking. I laughed a little, silently. I vowed to touch him as much as I could if I ever got the chance again, no matter how irritated it made him.

 

I jumped when I heard the lock to the door click. Thinking it was Jeza or Hak, I stood quickly, awkwardly.  My legs were weary with disuse.

 

The door opened, and my face flashed immediately to an expression of intense dislike. He smiled at me, which only made me all the more sullen. I stood up straight, knowing that he would get pissed about having to look up to me and taking a small amount of pleasure in that.

 _“Hello… creature. I have been informed that you can understand our language, so let’s make this quick. Your trial date has been set, you are to accompany me to the Tallests chambers now.”_ He sneered. I raised my chin in defiance and scowled at him.

 _“What if I refuse?”_ I growled. He just smiled evilly.

 _“Well if you would prefer to spend the rest of your miserable existence in this cell, then I won’t stop you.”_ I glared at him, but said nothing. _“That is what I thought.”_ He said. He turned and walked out of the room, holding the door open for me. As much as I would have liked to just stand there and piss him off with my stubborn need for disobedience, I surrendered. I was ready to get out of this room, even if it meant walking to my death. I was done waiting.

 

I followed him out of the door and down the hall. We walked continuously for a few minutes, neither of us spoke. I stared at the back of his head as I followed him, wondering why he wasn’t surrounded in guards. I mean, come on, I had killed Zeema. Killed her. I should be considered dangerous or something shouldn’t I?

 

When we came to the large double doors at the end of a long hallway, I knew somehow that we were at the Tallests rooms. Two similar symbols were etched into the doors, their names. I was suddenly nervous. Pazak didn’t hesitate, he opened the doors in front of him and walked right in like he owned the place. I walked in after him, looking around. The room was large, with a high ceiling and many different computers and screens mounted on the walls. Irken soldiers stood around the room, spaced out among the computers, guarding and witnessing. The center floor space was wide and open, one area in the middle was raised, like a platform. The Tallests stood there, looking all superior, but my attention was not on them. My eyes were drawn to him, standing there next to the platform, looking at me, his eyes taking in my appearance hungrily.

 

Ignoring Pazak, I walked quickly to Zim, the weakness in my limbs forgotten. When I reached him, his hands reached out and touched each side of my face. In that moment I was so happy that I couldn’t contain it. I fell, my knees buckled and I ended up kneeling in front of him. It probably looked very degrading, but I didn’t care.

“Are you well, Dib?” He asked, his eyes searched mine, and all my worries and suspicions were washed away in that one look. He didn’t give me time to answer though, before he was letting me go and looking away from me and toward the Tallests.

 _“Well Zim, we have called you here to tell you that we have made our decision.”_  One of the Tallests said, I assumed that he was Red, since he was dressed as such. I looked up at Zim to see him sneering as though he smelled something rotten.

 _“And what is your decision, my dear Tallests?”_ He asked, his voice dripping with contempt. Red frowned at him, but it was Purple who answered.

 _“We have decided to dismember your Zakri, and banish you, Zim. You will not be allowed to interact with your fellow Irkens, for the remainder of your existence, since you seem to despise your own race enough to pick a mate from such a pathetic species.”_ My jaw fell open as he spoke, and I couldn’t bring myself to look back up at Zim. Instead, I looked over at Pazak, hating him more than I had ever hated anything. He was looking at me, smiling superiorly. I felt that familiar rage begin to take over me, and I struggled to control it. I don’t know why I bothered, it’s not like I could get in anymore trouble by killing him too.

 

 _“Why, may I ask, has he been sentenced to dismemberment?”_ Zim asked. His tone was odd, not angry as I thought it should sound. I frowned, confused and looked up at him, but he was staring at the Tallests.

 _“Because it is against Invader Code for a Zakri to harm an Invader, Zim, as you should know.”_  Red said, as though this was something obvious.

 _“Then your decision was made on false assumptions, my Tallests.”_ Zim said. I looked up at him incredulously, but he was smiling this time. I had the strange suspicion that he was losing his mind. The Tallests, as well as Pazak, looked at him doubtfully.

 _“Explain.”_ Purple said, gliding forward a few feet, giving his full attention to Zim. Pazak too, was staring at him.

 _“The Dib is not a Zakri, he is an Invader. As an Invader, I also claim him as my mate, which gives him my status as an Advisor to my Tallest. Which means he should have a lighter punishment.”_  Zim said sneakily, bowing his head to the Tallest. I almost couldn’t believe my ears. We might actually get out of this? I couldn’t dare to hope that they would accept his flawed logic. I looked up at them, anxious.

 

 _“That is ridiculous! He is not even Irken! He can’t be an Invader if he is not Irken!”_ It was not the Tallest who shouted this, it was Pazak, pointing his long green finger at me. I glared back at him defiantly.

 _“There is nothing in the Invader Code that says that ONLY Irkens can be made into Invaders.”_ Zim dodged, his words smooth and confident. Pazak’s eyes bugged wide, his expression reminding me of Zim’s when he would go into temporary bouts of insanity.

 _“Technically, he is right.”_ Red said frowning, though his voice as thoughtful. That little bubble of hope started to swell up in my chest, against my wishes.

 _“No! He cannot be an Invader! He has not passed the test!”_ Pazak screeched desperately at the Tallests.

 _“You are wrong again, Pazak.”_ Zim sneered at him, triumphant. He then looked down at me. _“Dib, were you not there in my base with me, as I acted out my plans in attempts to enslave the human race? Did you not assist me with my experiments on human behavior?”_ He looked away from me and back at the Tallests. _“He was there with ZIM every step of the way as I conquered that rock. He turned traitor to his own race, and promised his loyalty to ZIM. He HAS passed the test to be an Invader.”_ He said, his voice confident. He stood tall, with his chin up, waiting for their reply. Pazak watched them as well, breathing heavily, his eyes still wild. He looked demented.  The Tallest glanced at each other once, and Red nodded, then turned to Zim.

 

 _“Purple and I will discuss this matter amongst ourselves. The earthling will be placed back in his cell, Zim you will go back to your quarters. Pazak, you will go back to your quarters as well. We will call for you when we make our final decision.”_ He said, looking back to Purple. I looked up at Zim, who nodded then looked down at me. I could see the soldiers moving in around us. Zim put his hands on my shoulders quickly, and leaned down and put his mouth to my ear.

 _“I will see you soon, Dib creature. Do not die in the meantime.”_  He whispered quickly, before I felt the cold gloved hands on my upper arms once again. I didn’t look at the soldiers who started to drag me away, I stared hard at Zim, trying to judge the expression in his eyes as he watched me get carried away yet again. His eyes were narrowed, his shoulders were rigid. I nodded to him, trying to show him my determination, to show him that I did NOT intend to die. Not yet.

 

          

 

 

 


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Chapter 16

 

I was really starting to get tired of this damn cell.

 

After they had thrown me back in here, I had settled down to wait yet again, trying to conserve what strength I had left, which wasn’t much. I was so tired all of the time, and I was getting thinner. I was probably almost as thin as Zim now. My sense of time was still off, I had no idea how long I had been in there. My mind was settling into a state of numbness. If I hadn’t been dying from starvation, I was confident that I would have been dying from boredom.

 

I hadn’t seen or heard from Jeza or Hak since they had brought me back. I was under the impression that they had soldiers guarding my door this time, which I was less than pleased with. Without them sneaking me food or those weird shots, I wouldn’t last much longer. Even knowing this, I couldn’t seem to find it in myself to be scared of death. I wasn’t scared of much at all anymore. Most of the time I was angry, or paranoid, or numb. Or just missing Zim.

 

After so much time of sitting there staring into space, trying not to think, I started to realize something. My pak was no longer sore as it had been. I could now touch it without cringing. So then I started to fill the hours with small experiments. I could feel some of my old self start to dwindle back into me as I poked and prodded the sensitive shell, and flexed muscles that weren’t there before. I wasn’t sure exactly how Zim had connected this thing to me, but I knew that it was part of me, it was fused into me. I could feel every time something touched it, I could feel the _inside_ of it. I knew that if they didn’t have this contraption on me, that I could use it. But whatever they had stuck to the top of my pak when they took me in was stopping me from using it at all. I began to flex everything I could, memorizing the different muscles and what they did and what they felt like. It was a challenge to me, I began to realize that now I was part of something that I had always loved, the paranormal. I was no longer _human_. But neither was I Irken. That one realization went a long way towards quenching the rage that I had felt towards Zim for doing this to me.

 

I tried to push and shove at the _thing_ stuck to me, in hopes that maybe I might be able to remove it and use my pak, but it was useless. My body was weak and I was too tired to try for long. So then I settled down once again, leaning against the wall with my hands folded in my lap and my eyes closed, trying to preserve my strength. I had the strangest feeling that if I just sat there motionless, that I would survive longer. Irkens didn’t count time passing, It could be days, months even, before they decided to come get me. I tried to tell myself that Zim wouldn’t let this go on for that long, but I knew that he wasn’t controlling the situation either. I thought of him often, as I sat there in my semi-comatose state, wondering how he was faring in his own imprisonment, and wondering how often he was thinking of me.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 _“They’re still there. They won’t budge, no matter how persuasive we get.”_  Jeza grumbled. She stood near the center table in Zim’s room, her thin arms crossed and a scowl on her pretty green face. Hak sat in one of the chairs near her, with her head in her hand and her elbow propped up on the table, staring thoughtfully into space.

Zim had been pacing agitatedly, but had stopped when Jeza came into the room, expectant. He had sent her to check on the guards by the Dibs door, but they were still in place. He continued pacing, growling to himself and gesturing wildly as he complained yet again about their situation.

 _“If we don’t get food to him, he’s going to die! He’s already been in there for six days! Why have they put guards at his door this time when they didn’t last time? With that STUPID holding contraption on his pak there is no way he would be able to escape his cell! So why the guards?!”_ Zim screeched, his whole body nearly shaking in frustration and anger.

 

 _“Maybe it’s not the possibility of the Dib escaping that they fear. Maybe it’s someone else getting in that has them acting with more caution. You saw the look on Pazak’s face yesterday when the Tallests decided to consider your proposal. He looked absolutely mad. I wouldn’t put it past him to try and get into the Dibs cell and dismember him himself. I’m sure the Tallest realize this.”_ Hak said quietly, her eyes still off in space. Zim stopped for a moment to consider this.

 _“Hak is right. It must be for the Dib’s protection. The Tallest may not seem it, but they’re quite clever. They know how Pazak is. If the Dib is going to die, they’ll want it to be by their order, not Pazak.”_ Jeza said, trying to reassure him. Zim nodded, but continued to pace and glare at nothing in particular. After a few minutes of this, he stopped and put his hands flat on the table and stared down at its glossy surface. He knew that if he didn’t get the Dib out soon, that he would lose him. His pak couldn’t keep him sustained forever. Making up his mind, he stood up straight and rigid and made for the door. Jeza and Hak looked up at him questioningly.

 _“Lord Zim? Where are you going?”_ Jeza asked, frowning.

 _“Zim is going to the Tallest. Zim is tired of waiting.”_ He said, his eyes narrowed before he walked out the door.

 

 

* * *

 

 

I opened my eyes when I heard the metallic click of the lock. I was still in the same position, I hadn’t moved in god knows how long. Two Irken soldiers came in, eyeing me suspiciously. I glared back at them, with all the hostility I could manage, which wasn’t much. They didn’t walk in, they just stood by the door and wiggling their sharp fingers at me, in a ‘come here’ gesture. Guess they didn’t get the memo that I could speak their language, so they resorted to over exaggerated sign language, like I was some dumb animal. I smirked at them.

 

 _“I can’t get up you fools. I haven’t eaten in days. My legs don’t have the strength.”_  I said in an acidic tone. They widened their eyes at me and glanced at each other, surprised and a little apprehensive. It seemed as if they were almost… scared of me. I smirked again. _“Well, don’t just stand there like a couple of smeets, come help me up.”_ I drawled, my voice sounding dull. My throat was dry and scratchy from disuse. They glanced at each other again before walking slowly forward. They didn’t speak to me, instead the lifted me up gently by the arms, letting me put my weight on them as they drug me from the room. I took the gentleness of their actions as a good sign, I mean come on, If they were about to sentence me to death, why be nice?

 

They drug me along the halls once again, but this time I didn’t bother wasting the energy required to keep my eyes open. I was so tired, and I had seen everything before anyway. I knew when they opened the door to the Tallests room, and when they drug me through the doors and set me lightly onto the floor. I heard the sharp intake of breath and couldn’t help but smile.

 _“You see? You see what this elongated imprisonment has done to him?”_  I heard him ask them, before I heard his voice closer, quieter. _“Dib-worm? Dib are you alive?”_ I felt his sharp fingers lifting my head to look at me. When I was sure his face was close enough, I opened my eyes and looked at him, smiling at much as I could manage. His expression turned from anxious to instant relief before it went anxious again and he set me down slowly. I closed my eyes again, resigning to listen.

 _“He is barely conscious. You will release him now. He has done you no harm, and by law you cannot hold him. I will fight for this if I must my Tallest, even though I do not wish to quarrel with you.”_ He said, his voice venomous. I could picture his narrowed eyed expression in my head, his rigid stance.

 _“We have considered what you said Zim, and we have decided to agree with you. The human Dib will be classified as an Invader, since he has a pak, and since he has passed the test required. He will be granted your status as your mate, and we will harm him no further.”_ Tallest Red said, his voice carrying no inflection, no sign of anger at Zim’s threat. If anything he seemed a little smug. Before I could even begin to register the relief of their decree, my little bubble of hope was rudely busted.

 

 _“Have you gone mad?!”_ Pazak’s voice carried from across the room. I opened my eyes and I could see him,  from my prone position here on the floor. He was standing just inside the doors, as if he had only just come in.

 _“You were not called to this meeting, Advisor Pazak.”_ Tallest Purple said, his voice low and warning.

 _“That creature dismembered Zeema! He had not yet been established as an Invader when this incident took place, so technically, at that time he was not yet an Invader! He was still a Zakri, and he should be trialed as one!”_ Pazak said desperately. I began to get anxious, fearing the Tallest would change their minds. I tried to sit up, my arms shaking as I tried to push at the ground. I lifted my head up, just enough to look up at the Tallests.

 _“My Tallest, Pazak and Zeema were scheming to have Zim killed so that Pazak could become Tallest in your place. Zeema had Zim trapped in her rooms when I walked in and dismembered her.”_ I said, stumbling over my words. I looked up at them, anxious. I didn’t know how they would react to me speaking to them directly. Zim bent down his thin fingers wrapping around my arms, supporting me. I was grateful for his assistance, my body was so weak that I wouldn’t have stayed up but for a few more seconds. They stared at me, their expressions curious.

_“He LIES! And he has no PROOF!”_ Pazak spat, his eyes going wide.

 _“SILENCE!”_ Tallest Red screeched at Pazak. _“We have made our decision. Advisors Zim and Dib are free to go, but YOU Pazak, you will be confined to your quarters until we finish investigating the Dibs accusations.”_ Tallest Red seethed, his eyes narrowed menacingly at Pazak.  Zim wasted no time in lifting me up into his arms, cradling me to his chest.

 _“If you will excuse us, my Tallest, I am going to take my Dib to our rooms, he is in need of medical attention.”_  Zim then bowed to the Tallest, and walked towards the door without waiting for an answer. As we passed Pazak, he watched us, his eyes narrowed. I knew that he wasn’t going to give up on this, but right now I didn’t really care. Zim and I were free, and all I wanted to do was bathe, lay in our bed, and be fed A LOT of food. I smiled up at him, my mind going hazy. I was reaching my limit.

 _“Sleep, my Dib. We will talk when you are well again. Sleep.”_ His voice was hypnotizing, and before I knew it, my mind started slipping away, and I was lost in the dark sea of unconsciousness.

 

 

 

 


	17. Chapter Seventeen

Chapter 17

 

I was trying so hard… and yet… no. Definitely not. I definitely could not remember ever feeling this good.

 

I was in the bath. I gained consciousness as Zim had laid me down on the bed. In my dim state, I had gotten a little confused when he had pulled out the needle, before I realized he was just giving me the usual shot. I had gotten very confused afterwards, when he started stripping me, preparing myself to tell him that I was in no condition to perform those… duties. But when he picked me back up and carried my filthy, naked body down to the bath, I couldn't help but fall in love with him all over again. As he ran the hot water, I asked myself, how could I ever have doubted him?

 

So here I was, soaking in warm soapy water, feeling better than I had ever felt in my life. I was alone, with the back of my head resting against the side of the tub as water dripped from my hair and down my face and neck. I had combed it back with my fingers, to get it out of my eyes. I could feel whatever medicine he had given as it started to work. My limbs were not as heavy as they had been, my mind wasn't as slow. My sensing were starting to sharpen once again. As I lay there, letting the water wash the filth from my body, I began to hear Zim's voice through the walls.

 

His words were still dim, and I couldn't quite make out what he was saying. He was talking quietly, to Hak and Jezza probably. I waited there for a while, listening to the low voices. I was curious as to what they were talking about, but not curious enough to disturb my comfort, not yet anyway.

 

I don't know how long I was in there. Before all of this mess, I would have paid more attention to the time as it passed. I wasn't sure whether or not it was the fact that I had gotten used to sitting motionless, doing nothing, or if it was just my new pak, altering my basic personality structure. I didn't really care either. I was just content, to lay there in the water and soak. Though, after a while, one thing began to bother me; Zim. I had spent so long without him, I missed being in his presence. It was almost like a physical thing, I could feel him, when he was around me. Like a touch, but also not, at the same time. The voices had long faded when I finally dragged myself out of the water. I was clean and pruny and dripping wet. The water was murky from the filth that had washed from my body, I felt so much better.

 

I dried off and wrapped the towel around my waist, and walked sluggishly out into the bedroom. Zim wasn't in there, I figured he must be in the meeting room. I walked across the room to my private bedroom and picked up a pair of boxers and dark jeans off of the floor. I slipped them on, not bothering with a shirt, and threw the towel lazily on the floor as I walked out. When I got to the door to the meeting room, I opened it cautiously, slowly. Three green heads turned curiously in my direction. I caught Zim's gaze, letting a smile slid into place. I felt relief, happiness, impatience, and twitchy, all at the same time. He was standing at the table, a small Irken device in his hands. My neck did that strange twitch to the side and let my gaze drop from his in embarrassment. I didn't really understand why, but I didn't want to talk about the twitch, so I spoke quickly, distracting them.

 

"I'm hungry." I was actually a little surprised, if I had planned what I was going to say, that definitely wouldn't have been it. He weighed the device in his hand as he replied, smiling.

"Patience Invader Dib, I will put food things in your belly soon. Come here." He smiled sneakily, giving me the "come here" gesture with his long green finger. I frowned at him, a little paranoid that he was going to hurt me or trick me somehow.

 

Ignoring the feeling, I obeyed and walked over to him, stopping in front of him with my eyes narrowed. He walked around me, to my back and I stiffened but didn't turn. I heard a clicking and felt something attach to my pak. I gasped; the feeling wasn't painful, just unpleasant. It lasted for only a second before I heard another click and whatever he had attached released me. I felt lighter, a sense of release and relief washed over me. I reached around to my pak, to find that that strange device that had been stopping me from using it, was gone. I took a deep breath, rolling my shoulders and feeling things in my pack move. It was a strange feeling. Zim walked back around me, holding the hated contraption. He dropped in on the table and turned to Hak and Jezza, who were watching us intently.

 _"That will be all Invader Jezza, Invader Hak."_ He stood there and watched them nod their heads respectfully before turning and leaving, shutting the door to his meeting room quietly behind them. When they were gone and we were alone, I looked at him. So many different emotions at once passed through me, exhaustion, relief, agitation, need. I was exhausted from everything that had happened. Mentally drained. I was relieved that it was all over. I was agitated for no reason. Subtle twitches, his distance from me. There was no physical contact between us. I needed him. I walked to him slowly. He stayed still. His emotions at war, it was plain to see. He wanted me too. But I could also now understand his eccentrics, his paranoia. It was a part of me now, too. His fingers twitched and tapped the table that he was leaning against. I reached him slowly and stood in front of him, inches away. I didn't touch him with my hands, even though I wanted to. Instead, I leaned in, keeping his gaze, and slowly rubbed my cheek along his. He sighed and finally relaxed. I took his reaction as permission, and turned my face towards him to kiss him softly. His hand reached up and touched my shoulder. When his fingers made contact with my bare shoulder a rush of heat came over me and I couldn't move fast enough, I couldn't get to him fast enough. I put a hand over the small of his back and one on his side, my fingers roaming over him greedily over his clothes. I groaned, they were in my way.

 

Zim's reaction to my urgency surprised me. I half expected him to push me away and rant about needing to put 'food stuffs' in my belly or some other weird crap. But he didn't. He didn't push me away. He grabbed me and pulled me closer. As though he needed me as much as I needed him. He ran his fingers tenderly over my pak and I shivered. The feeling was still new to me. I ran both of my hands down his body and leaned down, placing them on the underside of his thighs. I picked him up suddenly, and he wrapped his legs around my waist and dug his sharp fingers into my back, clinging to me.

"Dib-beast! Put Zim down!" I smiled. I put him down. On the table, so that he was sitting on its edge with his legs hanging over. I moved in between them, his knees on either side of my hips. I captured his mouth again, kissing him aggressively. He growled at me in agitation, but kissed me back with twitching antennae.

 

After so many days of missing his touch, his presence, I felt as if I was drugged again. Drunk on him. Everywhere our skin touched, heat rose up. Every time we kissed it made me want him more. He wrapped his tongue around mine in that way that I loved and I groaned again. My hands couldn't touch enough of him. My pak tingled as my erection pressed against my jeans, begging to be touched. I pushed myself into him to make my need clear. To my dismay, he pulled away.

 

"Stop Dib. Zim does not want to do the sex act with you here." He pushed me away and slid off of the table. He grabbed the front of my jeans and started pulling me to the bedroom. I tried not to smile. Once we were inside, he shut the door and pulled me next to the bed. "I command you to undress me." He said, gesturing at his own clothes and holding his head up with superiority. Again, I tried not to smile. I didn't want him to freak out and ruin this. I decided to try something that I had not done before. I decided to obey. To really obey. Not for my own safety or for the sake of him not going crazy on me, but for his own pleasure. I smirked to myself and dropped to my knees. His eyes widened as he looked down at me.

 

"Yes sir, Invader Zim, my master." I nearly lost my shit when I saw his face. He was stunned. It took all of my self control not to smile. I reached up and grabbed them hem of his shirt and stood slowly, pulling it up and over his head. He stared at me, his eyes narrowed, expecting some sort of trick. But he did not stop me. I threw his shirt on the floor then lowered myself back down to pull of his boots, one at a time. He sat back on the bed as I removed them. Still watching me warily. Still on my knees, I reached up and tugged at his pants, pulling them down his legs and off of him. He was naked before me then, as he wore no underwear. I dropped back down to my knees before him and bowed my head.

"What do you command of me, Lord Zim?" I asked softly, looking up at him. He stared at me for a moment, still suspicious. I did not budge. After a moment, he smiled.

 

"Zim commands that you touch. Here." He pointed one of his long green fingers at his neck. "And here." He pointed at his chest. "And here." Then at his stomach and legs. Then his fingers roamed to his quickly growing arousal. "And here and here. And here." He said, that evil smile that I had come to love so much firmly in place upon his lips. This time, I did smile. I reached up to touch his neck first, but he pulled away.

"Not with these." He grabbed my hands and pushed them away, on either side of him. "With this." He touched my lips lightly. I grinned. "Yes, my Lord Zim."

 

I stood and put both hands on the bed, on either side of him. Leaning down, I kissed his neck softly, nipping ever so gently with my teeth. I moved slowly, from his neck to his chest to his stomach, pushing him back onto the bed slowly as I went down. When I reached the part I wanted most, I paused and leaned up to look at him. He was watching me, his lips parted slightly, eagerly. I wanted to remember him like this. At my mercy. Outside of this act, he could command me all he wanted. But in this, I was in control. I smiled, and before he could protest, I covered his length with my mouth.

 

That high pitched metallic cry was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard. I wanted to hear it again. I sucked him, hard, up and down over and over. He gripped the sheets with his sharp fingers, his head back and his antennae twitching. I devoured him greedily as he writhed below me. I loved this reaction, this emotion that I could get from him only here, only while I touched him this way.

 

I knew he was close when he pushed me away from him. We were both panting, me on my knees and him half laying on the bed, propped up on his elbows looking at me. I couldn't wait any longer. I stood, grabbing him by his thighs and shoving him up higher on the bed. He picked his legs up and spread them, waiting for me. I positioned myself between his legs, right at that sweet opening that was meant for me. I leaned down and whispered in his ear, "My Lord Zim..." before shoving myself inside him. We both groaned as he tightened around me. I would never get enough of this feeling.

 

Over and over I pushed myself into him, admiring his green skin, flushed with our love making. Nothing mattered, as long as I had Zim. Not earth, not the Tallest, not Pazak. Just the two of us. And I knew I would kill anyone who got in the way. In this act, I had conquered him. Zim was _mine._

 

All too soon I felt his fingers fumble around to my shoulders, his body tightening around me. I pushed harder, faster. I was close to my own release and I wanted it more than anything. Reaching down, I grasped him with my fingers and pumped up and down until he finally let go and let out that metallic sound that I loved so, so much. I came gasping, clutching his legs tightly and arching back. I stilled and looked down at him, smiling. He narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth, probably about to tell me off before my stomach growled rather loudly and interrupted him.

 

"Shame on you, filthy earthling, for making Zim forget to give you nourishment. Zim will put food stuffs in your belly now." He said, shoving me off of him, albeit rather gently. I groaned when I slipped out of him, away from that heat that I loved so much. I collapsed on the bed next to him, as he sat up. My chest rose with my heavy breaths as I lay there, basking in the aftermath. He looked at me, his expression bored. His fingers rose to touch my face, lingering over the tattoos, his mark on my flesh. His expression went from bored to heated and possessive. I felt myself hardening all over again. He must have noticed, because he dropped his hand and stood smoothly.

 

"The Dib must eat. Get up. Now." He commanded. I smiled and sat up, but did not rise from the bed. I watched him bend over and pick up his clothes and slip them on, then walk out into his meeting room. The sounds of his computer coming to life filled the silence as I dressed, he had a short discussion in Irken about having food delivered to the room. I was glad, I had no desire to go to the food court.

 

Ten minutes later I sat at the large table in his meeting room eating as though I hadn't in days. Which made sense, as I actually hadn't eaten in days. The table was covered in food, from pizza to burgers and fries, hot dogs, chips, doughnuts, muffins, and waffles. It still amazed me that Irkens ate many of the same things we did.

 

Zim was sitting a few chairs away munching on some fries and mumbling to himself about the data he had taken from my pak. He was concerned about the transition my body was going through, especially given all the recent events. He had originally planned to study my body's changes daily, but to his intense displeasure, it hadn't worked out that way. Now he was obsessing over the data he had collected, running tests and altering the formula for that weird shot he had been giving me. I watched him as I ate, content to listen to him ramble.

A few minutes later he stood mumbling to himself about gathering skin cell samples from the cell they had kept me in and walked into the bedroom, distracted. I sat where I was, chewing on a piece of pizza. It seemed that I could eat a lot more since being attached to my new pak. I couldn't seem to find the desire to stop eating. I was just ravenous. I was so distracted by my weird new appetite that I didn't hear the door creak open behind me.

  
  
  
  


 

 

 

 

 


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well here is your last chapter. Thank you for reading, and reviews are appreciated. <3

Chapter 18

 

Many things happened at once. Zim walked back into the room and dropped something, something fragile enough that it broke when it hit the floor. He screeched loudly, the noise made me jump. A rush of air went passed me, and I turned to look as the side of my face was suddenly splattered with hot, purple blood. Pazak stood just a few feet behind me, with one of Zim's mechanical arms jutting from a gaping hole in his abdomen. I looked back at Zim, who had his eyes narrowed in intense hatred as he stalked towards Pazak. Using the arm he had impaled Pazak with, he lifted him up off the floor and brought him closer to himself, so that Zim could look him in the face.

"Disgraceful sack of Irken meat. The Dib belongs to ZIM. You shall NEVER touch him." Zim hissed into Pazaks face. I had never seen him look at anything that way. His eyes were narrowed to slits and his teeth were bared. I mean, Zim had looked at me with some pretty hateful expressions. But this animosity was in a category of its own. I watched, speechless.

 

Pazak coughed up blood, spitting it onto Zims face. He didn't even flinch.

 _"YOU are the disgrace ZIM. How could you mate with this disgusting creature? You will bring our race to ruin!"_ Pazak screamed at him, his hands grasping at the metal flesh protruding from his torso. His fingers scraped at the arm uselessly.

 _"Do not presume to think you can understand the amazing mind of ZIM. My slave is no concern of yours, you pathetic excuse for an invader. The Tallest may have tolerated you, but I made you a promise, and I intend to keep it."_ Zim's expression of hatred turned into a smile so wicked that I took a few steps back before bumping into the table.

 _"You should never have come after Zim's Zakri, Pazak."_ He said, his voice dripping with demented amusement as he brought Pazak closer. Pazak tried to squirm but Zim held him tight, his mechanical arm had reached all the way though and wrapped itself around Pazak's pak, rendering it useless. Still smiling evilly at Pazak, Zim slowly removed one of his long black gloves, and brought his slim, beautiful green hand to Pazak's chest. His sharp fingers dug into the wound and Pazak screeched, and inhuman, hair raising sound. I watched, stunned as Zim's hand dug steadily deeper into Pazak, as though searching for something. Pazaks hands gripped at Zim's arm, trying to push him out, to no avail.

 

I was morbidly drawn to the destruction of Zim's former comrade. Before I might have stopped Zim, and tried to convince him to spare Pazak. But now a part of me secretly egged him on, wanting him to kill Pazak, to eliminate this threat. That part of me kept the other part, the human part, quiet.

 

Zim's arm stopped moving inward and twitched, as Pazak coughed up blood again, his eyes staring wide at Zim. I watched that lovely green arm, that had not so long ago caressed my face with such tenderness, wrench out of Pazaks torso. His hand gripped a bloody, fleshy piece of meat. I stared in amazement as Zim spoke.

 _"Here it is Pazak, just as Zim promised. Now, eat it."_ Zim hissed, then shoved the flesh down Pazak's throat. Zim pulled his hand away just before he ripped his mechanical arm from Pazak's abdomen, clutching his pak and crushing it. Pazak's lifeless body fell to its knees, then onto the floor and was still.

I gaped at Zim as he slung some of the blood off of his hand and onto the floor. He looked up at me, his expression angry and defensive, as though I would berate him for his actions. He walked around the table towards me. I stood motionless and a little intimidated as he walked towards me. He fisted his blood covered hand into the front of my shirt and jerked my face towards his.

 

"The Dib belongs to ZIM." He said angrily, as though I had misbehaved.

"Yes, Zim." I said quietly, not wanting to set him off. He nodded, satisfied, before he released me. He walked around me and towards his computer monitor. I watched him as the pressed different buttons with his clean, still gloved hand. The large screen on the opposite wall came to life, with a transmission from the Tallest.

 _"Yes, Zim?"_ Tallest Red asked, in a bored tone. Tallest Purple stood beside him, his mouth continuously chewing on something.

 _"Invader Pazak broke into my rooms and attempted to attack me. I was forced to defend myself and dismember him. I need someone to come collect his remains."_ Zim said, his voice monotone. He gave nothing away. It struck me how much he had changed since all those years ago. It occurred to me that that if Zim ever did become Tallest, he would make a great and ruthless leader.

 

Tallest Purple continued chewing as though the conversation didn't interest him at all, while Tallest Red raised an eyebrow and responded.

_"Pazak broke into your room and tried to attack you, you say?"_

_"Yes. That is my official report."_ Zim said calmly, with authority. Tallest Red narrowed his eyes and was quiet for a minute. Zim didn't budge. Red sighed and waved his hand around dismissively.

 _"Very well Zim._ We will send someone to retrieve his body." Zim nodded his head respectfully.

 _"My Tallest."_ He said, before cutting off the transmission.

 

He turned to me, eying me with his signature 'one eye squinty and one eye wide' look. It almost made me smile.

"Fetch Zim's cleansing chalk Dib-thing. Zim must wash this filth off." He said, gesturing with his bloody hand. I nodded, saying nothing as I turned and walked back into the bedroom, stepping around Pazak's body. It took me a minute to find his cleansing chalk, when I walked back into his meeting room he was standing silently while some Irken soldiers were stuffing Pazak into a purple bag. I silently handed him his cleansing chalk and he started to wipe his hand with it as the soldiers began to scrub the blood off of his floor. He held his hand up, inspecting it while he rubbed it with the chalk, his expression bored once again. I stood back, leaning against the table and was silent.

 

When the soldiers had finished scrubbing, they left, but not before bowing respectfully and a little fearfully to 'Lord Zim'. I watched him as he dismissed them and shut the door behind them. He turned to me, regarding me thoughtfully. I stayed leaning against the table as he walked over to me. He put his long green fingers on the side of my face, his fingertips touching my tattoos.

"Pazak is gone. There is no one to harm us now." He said quietly. "Zim has grown tired. Sleep with Zim?" He asked. He had never asked me to literally sleep with him before. I was stunned. I nodded.

"Of course, Zim. I would be happy to." He grabbed my hand and led me into the bedroom. I smiled as I followed him.

 

 

* * *

 

  
  


_"Hey Zim, what is your home planet like?" I asked him. We were up on his roof once again, he was looking into the sky with his strange alien telescope while I laid on my back. It was peaceful after the fight I had gotten into with my dad. Calming._

_"Eh. It is superior to this ball of dirt you call a planet, in every way. Our buildings are much taller and lit up like the sun, we have gardens that go for many earth miles. Our moons are spectacular, much bigger than yours..." He went on and on about his planet. It sounded beautiful. I could tell by his voice that he missed it, even if he would never admit it._

_"Will you ever go back?" I asked, hesitant. I dreaded his answer. He was silent for a few minutes. I dropped it, thinking he wasn't going to respond._

_"Yes. One day." He said quietly. I didn't respond right away. I didn't want my voice to give me away._

_"Well you'll just have to take me with you, so I can see it. I love space, and my planet sucks anyway." I said, trying to play it off like I was joking. I tried to lighten the mood. It didn't work. He didn't say anything after that. I just laid there, thinking about the day that he would leave, and I would be stuck here alone. The longer I thought about it, the more depressed I became. After an hour or so, I sat up, facing away from him. I stood, intending to climb down off of his roof._

_"Where are you going Dib?" He asked, his attention focused on me._

_"Home I guess. Its getting late." I answered, shrugging. He looked at me, studying me. I started to feel self conscious._

_"Zim thought that the Dib did not want to go home." He phrased it as a question._

_"Well... not really..." I mumbled, confused._

_"The Dib can sleep on Zim's couch." Zim said, his eyes narrowed. Dib got the feeling that Zim was testing him again. He tried to think of anyway that Zim could use this against him. He couldn't think of anything. If Zim wanted to hurt him, he would have done it by now. He hesitated, staring at Zim._

_"What is wrong, filthy human? Is Zim's couch not good enough for sleep?" He asked, his eyes narrowing even more, in anger. I hurried to answer him._

_"Uh, no... Its not that. Its just that you've never offered to let me sleep at your house." I said, my voice confused and disbelieving. Zim looked away dismissively and waved his hand around like he always did. A familiar gesture._

_"Tomorrow is the last day of school right? Zim will wake the Dib up so you can go home and get changed for school in time. Zim was trying to be nice to the Dib. But if you would rather go home, then go." He said the word nice like one would say 'maggots'._

_"No, its fine. I'd be honored to sleep on your couch Zim." I smiled down at him as he sat in front of his telescope. He replied with a "eh" but said nothing else. I realized I was dismissed and turned around, smiling only when he couldn't see my face. I climbed down off of the roof and walked back into his weird house. I walked into his living room and laid down on his couch. It wasn't too bad. I had no pillows or blankets, but I didn't care. I laid there for a while, staring at the ceiling. We were finally out of school. No more teachers, classes, or homework. I didn't know what I wanted to do now. I had always wanted to be a paranormal scientist, but I hadn't really thought about it in a while._

_All I thought about was Zim. Spending time with Zim, talking to Zim, letting Zim put tubes on my head and take blood for his weird experiments. I didn't care. I trusted him now. I frowned at the thought of him leaving. The way he had answered made me nervous, like he was leaving soon. I sighed and tried to calm down, it wasn't like he was leaving tomorrow. He would let me know when the time came._

_I closed my eyes, adjusting my body to get more comfortable. I was cold, but it didn't matter. I would rather sleep on Zim's couch then sleep at home._

_I resigned myself to talk to him tomorrow about him leaving. We needed to discuss it. I couldn't bear the thought of him leaving, but I knew he had his own life to live. Planets to conquer. I found myself wishing that I had been born and Irken Invader, so I could share that life with him. Before I realized it, I was depressed again. I tried to put the thoughts out of my mind and fall asleep. Tomorrow, I told myself. There is always tomorrow._

* * *

 

  
_The End._


End file.
